Although more than 30 years separated their portrayals of Willy Wonka, actors Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp both delivered great performances of the iconic character.
Wilder became the first person to portray Wonka in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, a movie that has since been deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress. Depp ultimately donned the top hat and played the role in the 2005 film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which much more closely followed the story initially laid out in the novel of the same name.
Because of the differences between the scripts, as well as the time between the 1971 and 2005 films, fans sometimes debate who did it better: Wilder or Depp? Of course, there’s not a consensus on the matter.
Willy Wonka fans weighed on the matter on social media.
So tell us what you think, is the best Willy Wonka Gene Wilder or Johnny Depp?