Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a 2005 musical fantasy comedy film directed by Tim Burton and written by John August, based on the 1964 British novel of the same name by Roald Dahl. The film stars Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka and Freddie Highmore as Charlie Bucket. The storyline follows Charlie, who wins a contest and, along with four other contest winners, is led by Wonka on a tour of his chocolate factory, the most magnificent in the world. Development for a second adaptation of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (filmed previously as
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film) Jim Carrey as Willy Wonka, believing the duo could make "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" relevant to mainstream audiences, but Liccy Dahl opposed this. After receiving enthusiastic approval from the Dahl Estate, Warner Bros. hired Tim Burton to direct in May 2003. Burton compared the project's languishing development to "Batman" (1989), which he directed, in how there had been varied creative efforts with both films. He said, "Scott Frank's version was the best, probably the clearest, and the most interesting, but they had abandoned that." Liccy Dahl commented that Burton was the first and only director the estate was happy