Actor Timothée Chalamet is riding high on the success of his fantasy musical Wonka. He plays Willy Wonka in the film, based on Roald Dahl’s classic children’s novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which opened to positive reviews during the holiday season and was a surprise hit. It has now exceeded the $500 million milestone at the global box office, making it Timothée Chalamet’s most successful film yet.
Wonka was not a sure-shot winner during filming though it starred Chalamet, Hugh Grant, and more and was based on a beloved IP. Industry experts reportedly believed that the film would flop much like other new-age musicals such as West Side Story and In The Heights. However, the family-friendly musical seems to have won hearts despite the forces against it.
Timothée Chalamet’s Career Till Wonka
Actor Timothée Chalamet has slowly climbed up the latter of the Hollywood A-list with him headlining blockbusters as well as making himself endearing to cinephiles with memorable indies. The actor gained fame with small roles in films such as Interstellar and Men, Women, and Children.
He had his breakthrough when he starred in the indie dramas Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for the latter, propelling him to the mainstream. Chalamet went on to act in films such as Woody Allen’s A Rainy Day In New York and Netflix’s The King. He also starred alongside Steve Carrell in Beautiful Boy.
In 2021, Timothée Chalamet starred as the leading man in Dennis Villeneavue’s space opera Dune. The actor played Paul Atreides, the prince who has to flee along with his mother when the evil Harkonnens attack their kingdom to gain control of the spice melange on the planet of Arrakis. It was based on the popular sci-fi novel series by Frank Herbert.
Dune had a large ensemble cast along with Chalamet, including Rebecca Fergusson, Oscar Isaac, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Jason Momoa, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgard, and more. It was a blockbuster film that was unfortunately released during the global pandemic and earned $402 million at the global box office. It was Chalamet’s highest-grossing film as a leading man until 2023’s Wonka.
Timothée Chalamet’s Wonka Crosses The $500 Million Milestone
Timothée Chalamet returned to his Call Me By Your Name director Luca Guadagnino’s romantic horror film Bones and All. However, he was then cast as Willy Wonka in the fantasy musical Wonka based on Roald Dahl’s beloved children’s novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The actor’s casting was met with disapproval as previous actors such as Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp were steeped into the memory of the audience.
Talking about his iteration of the character, Chalamet told USA Today that he hoped to bring a performance that was different from that of Wilder and Depp. He said,
“I remember reading the script and immediately understanding that one of the crucial aspects of the character was his undying spirit and ambition. It was a total inverse of that Willy Wonka with a demented look in his eye that we all know. How would that character have started, to land in a place where he’s still childlike but sort of broken?”
Though the film was initially met with skepticism as musicals were also not hot property, Wonka opened to surprisingly positive reviews. The film drew praise for its direction by Paul King (known for Paddington) while Chalamet’s performance polarized viewers. However, Variety recently reported that the film crossed the $500 million mark at the box office, making it the highest-grossing film of Timothée Chalamet as a leading man.
