Netflix Pits Production Companies Against Each Other For Willy Wonka Reality Show
By Movieguide® Contributor
Netflix is reportedly getting ready to launch a new Willy Wonka-inspired competition show.
Deadline reported that they understand “that Netflix is preparing a reality competition series based on the Roald Dahl story. This comes after the streamer acquired the Roald Dahl Story Company in 2021.”
“The expansive project is the latest example of a burgeoning trend in the unscripted market in the U.S. – The Bake-Off,” the outlet continued.
An entertainment industry “bake-off” is “when production companies are tasked to pitch ideas” for shows to networks, per Consequence.
There are a few companies in the running, but The A.V. Club reported that “the bidding has apparently been winnowed down to reality TV giant Fremantle and Warner Bros.-owned Wall To Wall.”
Many producers have spoken out against this “bake-off” process, with one anonymous producer telling Deadline, “Bake offs are an epidemic and we hate them.”
“In the good old days, once in a while there were bake-offs, but typically, networks would pick a production company they knew and trusted and they would just partner up and make it work,” the source continued. “But now because the markets are so bad, they have the opportunity to make people audition. It’s the bane of our existence.”
Another producer pointed to the expense of bake-offs for production companies, explaining, “You can go in with a bunch of great ideas and spend $50,000 before you get an answer that could be a no.”
It’s not surprising that Netflix wants to pursue Willy Wonka-inspired content. Last year’s WONKA made over $600 million at the global box office. Movieguide® previously reported on the possibility of a sequel:
Following WONKA’s success, director Paul King says he’s open to the idea of a sequel.
In an interview with Screen Rant, King said, “I would love to make another Willy Wonka film if we can find the right story…This is a character Dahl came back to again and again, he felt there was mileage in it and he’s a storyteller a billion miles above anything I could ever dream up.”
The director mentioned that if there were to be a sequel, the storyline would occur somewhere between the WONKA movie and CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY.
“So, there is material to work from. I think if we came back to the character, it would probably be between here and Charlie because there’s 30 years there to explore,” he explained. ‘
However, he doesn’t want to rush the process.
“Let’s just take it for a walk and keep calm, and it was about 50 years between the Gene Wilder movie and our one. We can wait a beat, and if we don’t come up with a story, this is a movie with a beginning, a middle, and end that works on its own,” King said.
“Of course there are some ideas sloshing around, but we don’t have a story yet, so we’ll see what happens,” he added.
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