The Notting Hill star will play the famous chocolate factory worker in a prequel starring Timothée Chalamet.
The dwarf actor criticized the new film about Willy Wonka. The reason is that Hugh grant was chosen to play in one of Oompa Loompachocolate factory workers.
In a recent trailer for the prequel to Roald Dahl’s beloved novel, Grant was shown as one of the inhabitants of Umpalandia. Dahl’s novel describes the Oompa-Loompas as “short, stocky, dark-skinned creatures” whom Willy Wonka encounters in the Oompalandia region of the Oompa-Loompas, a small island located in the Pacific Ocean. Given their great love for cocoa, Wonka invites them to work in his factory.
While several Twitter users found the star’s casting to be “uplifting”. notting hillactor and comedian George Koppen, best known for his role in fantasy Netflix Academy of Good and Evilthought that the role should go to an actor with dwarfism.
“Many people, myself included, argue that gnomes should be offered everyday roles in dramas and soap operas, but we are not offered such roles”Koppen stated this in a recent interview with the BBC. “Many actors with dwarfism feel excluded from the industry we love. One door closes, and the next one was forgotten to be opened.”.
Koppen’s recent comments are similar to those he made earlier this month on Instagram. The actor wrote that in the previous two films based on the novel by Dal Oompa-Loompa “they were played by gnomes, but this time they decided to take our job away”.
recognizing that “Some people will say that such roles are humiliating and that we should play more normal roles”the actor noted that “These roles are not offered to us”. Koppen added that Game of Thrones Peter Dinklage “he doesn’t speak for all of us, unlike most of us, he is in a position where he can afford to turn down a job”.
In an interview in 2022 Independent Dinklage admitted that his success in Game of Thrones offered him “luxury” to be able to turn down job offers to play all sorts of tiny fantasy figures such as “elves or goblins”. “I’ve read a lot of scripts where height is the only character trait, but I’m not like that”explained. “It’s a part of me, but I don’t think about it all day. And if it doesn’t define me, why should it define character? It’s just bad writing.”.
Koppen concluded: “People forget that we have a say in the work we do”explaining that he had been offered roles in the past that he turned down. “But at least give us that option instead of shutting us out”.
Also read “Snow White: Megyn Kelly” rekindles the controversy against Peter Dinklage: “You ruined the roles available for six other dwarfs.”