‘Wonka’: Hugh Grant Oompa Loompa casting controversy, explained

Although Wonka boasts a talented ensemble cast, there’s no escaping the controversy that seems to follow the prequel project like a bad smell. Gone are the days of Gene Wilder and Johnny Depps’ Willy Wonka portrayals; the role instead goes to Timothée Chalamet, an up-and-coming star who rose to prominence for his role as Elio in Call Me by Your Name.

Focusing on Willy Wonka’s early days as an aspiring chocolatier, Wonka serves as a spiritual sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, specifically the 1971 (Gene Wilder) version, which was itself based on the 1964 novel of the same name by Roald Dahl. In May 2021, Chalamet was cast in the role of Willy Wonka, outmatching his competitor, Tom Holland. By September 2021, Keegan-Michael Key, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, Olivia Colman, and Jim Carter were added to the supporting cast.

In April 2023, two years later, Hugh Grant signed on as an Oompa Loompa, and that’s where things took a controversial turn. His appearance in Wonka is drawing a lot of criticism from people of shorter stature, namely George Coppen, a British actor with dwarfism, who believes the role of an Ooompa Loompa should have gone to a dwarf. For example, these complaints are in line with the common transgression of transgender roles going to cis-gendered actors over actual trans actors.

“A lot of actors [with dwarfism] feel like we are being pushed out of the industry we love,” Coppen told the BBC. “A lot of people, myself included, argue that dwarfs should be offered everyday roles in dramas and soaps. But we aren’t getting offered those roles. One door is being closed, but they have forgotten to open the next one.”

Grant’s representatives did not immediately respond to The Times‘ request for comment, and Warner Bros. declined to comment on the film’s casting decision either.

“So I was watching the new Wonka trailer and I thought it looked pretty good until the very end where Hugh Grant appears as an oompa loompa,” Coppen wrote on Instagram. “Why? In the previous two films all the oompa loompas have been played by dwarves but this time round they have decided to take work away from us.”

And that’s all there is to it. Hugh Grant is 5ft 11 inches or 180.3 cm tall, which makes him practically 6ft, portraying an Oompa Loompa who’s canonically 3 feet, 11 inches. And how tall is Coppen? You guessed it. He’s 3ft 10 inches or 117cm. All of a sudden, we can see the glaringly obvious problem here.

Whether or not Warner Bros. keeps Grant among the cast has yet to be seen, but considering Wonka is due to release in December this year, there isn’t a whole lot of time to recast and reshoot.