Taika Waititi teams with Netflix on two Charlie and the Chocolate Factory animated series

Variety

Fresh off his Oscar win for writing Jojo Rabbit, Waititi will write, direct and produce a reimagined animated take on Roald Dahl's 1964 children's novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He'll also make another animated series on the Oompa-Loompa characters, the small humans who were preyed upon in Loompaland before Wonka invited them to work at his factory. “The shows will retain the quintessential spirit and tone of the original story while building out the world and characters far beyond the pages of the Dahl book for the very first time,” Netflix said in a statement. The streaming service added that both series mark the beginning of an “extensive partnership” between Netflix and The Roald Dahl Story Company. “Finding just the right creative partner to bring Willy Wonka, Charlie and the Oompa-Loompas to life in animation was a daunting task…until Taika walked into the room,” said Melissa Cobb, Netflix's vice president of original animation. “Then, it was really obvious. If Dahl had created a character of a filmmaker to adapt his work, I’m pretty sure he would have created Taika.”