New Zealand filmmaker and actor Taika Waititi will be writing, directing, and executive producing two original animated series for Netflix based on Roald Dahl's famous children's book Charlie and the Chocolate factory, Variety reports.

One will be based on the more well-known story of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, as penned in the 1964 novel, and the other will be based on the world of the Oompa-Loompa characters.

“The shows will retain the quintessential spirit and tone of the original story while building out the world and characters far beyond the pages of the Dahl book for the very first time,” Netflix said, per Variety.

Take a look at the trailer for 1971's Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory starring Gene Wilder:

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The projects will be the start of a new partnership between Netflix and The Roald Dahl Story Company. This will include classics from the British author - such as Matilda, The BFG and The Twits being remade by the streaming giant.

Waititi is best known for writing and directing World War II satire, Jojo Rabbit, released earlier this year. The filmmaker won the Academy Award for Best Writing Adapted Screenplay for the film.

“In the words of Willy Wonka himself – we are ‘Delighted! Charmed! Overjoyed!’ with Taika’s appointment on this project. There is something undeniably Wonka-esque about Taika’s creative flair and inimitable sense of humor and we cannot think of anyone more perfectly suited to leading the creative charge on these first of their kind, feature quality Netflix shows,” said Gideon Simeloff, commercial and entertainment director of the Roald Dahl Story Company.

One of the best-known adaptions of Dahl's original novel is the 1971 movie musical, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, starring Gene Wilder as Wonka and Peter Ostrum as poor paperboy, Charlie Bucket.

A more recent adaption was Tim Burton's 2005 version starring Johnny Depp as Wonka and Freddie Highmore as Charlie Bucket.

One of the most iconic scenes from the 1996 film adaption of Roald Dahl's Matilda involves schoolboy Bruce Bogtrotter being forced to eat an entire chocolate cake by himself.

It's an image burned into the brains of every millennial who watched the film over and over again as a kid, but what you may not know is that the actor who played Bogtrotter in the film looks entirely unrecognizable today, 30 years on from Matilda's original release.

Jimmy Karz potrayed Bruce Bogtrotter in the 1996 film Matilda and although some of his co-stars in the movie, such as Danny DeVito and Pam Ferris, have remained international stars, he's faded from the spotlight.

But Karz, 30 years on from Matilda's release, looks very different today.

Jimmy Karz starred as Bruce Bogtrotter in the 1996 adaption of Roald Dahl's Matilda. Credit: Sony Pictures

What does Bruce Bogtrotter actor Jimmy Karz look like today?

Jimmy Karz didn't pursue a full-time acting career following his appearance in Matilda, instead choosing to step away from the spotlight despite his success at such a young age.

Only 12 years old at the time of Matilda's release, Karz actually reunited with a lot of his on-screen cast, including Mara Wilson (Matilda) and Rhea Perlman (Mrs Wormwood) for a 2013 special, Afternoon Tea: A Matilda Reunion.

During an interview in 2015, Karz reminisced about his time filming Matilda, including his iconic chocolate cake scene.

He remembered that filming of that particular sequence took roughly three weeks to film, and came with its own challenges.

"I had to be on set everyday and wear the same clothes every day," he told the American Osteopathic Association. "Every day I had to have the chocolate painted on my face the way it was painted the day before.

"I despised the smell of chocolate for a few weeks after that."

Jimmy Karz looks very different today. Credit: Sony Pictures

What happened to Bruce Bogtrotter actor Jimmy Karz after Matilda?

Following the release of Matilda, Karz had a role in the 1998 rom-com The Wedding Singer, starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, as well as a bit-part in popular US medical drama ER, which starred George Clooney.

However, Karz stepped back from the camera and spent two years at MTV as a production associate before finding, in his words, a passion for "service-orientated" work.

He worked in a community garden, volunteered to teach people from low-income communities how to grow their own food and decided to study biochemistry, before moving into medicine.

Today, Karz is a doctor, having graduated from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in 2017.

Featured image credit: Sony Pictures

Tom Hanks has waded into the book censorship row following the backlash against Roald Dahl and Agatha Christie novels.

Hanks, 66, is one of H0llywood's most loved stars as he has graced our screens for decades and seemingly never puts a foot wrong.

The Forrest Gump star has got involved in the debate that is raging at the minute after much-loved books are being altered to cater to "modern sensitivities".

During an appearance on BBC Radio 4, Arts Correspondent Rebecca Jones questioned the actor on his thoughts about the works of dead authors being altered for modern audiences.

This comes after rows emerged following publisher's hiring "sensitivity reads" whose job it is to censor works of words deemed to be hurtful, such as "fat" and "mad", which appear frequently in Roald Dahl's works.

"Well, I'm of the opinion that we're all grown-ups here. And we understand the time and the place and when these things were written," Hanks said.

"It's not very hard at all to say: that doesn't quite fly right now, does it?" he continued. "'Let's have faith in our own sensibilities here, instead of having somebody decide what we may or may not be offended by."

Hanks went on: "Let me decide what I am offended by and not offended by. I would be against reading any book from any era that says abridged due to modern sensitivities."

The comments come after the release of Hanks' first book, The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece, which lifts the lid on Hollywood.

Following the success of the book's release, the actor was questioned whether he had any more upcoming written projects.

He responded: "It never stops. That would be nice, but you’d have to talk to me in another three or four years. But the wanting to sit down and create – it’s just the best way to spend one's time outside of being with those you love and [who] make you laugh."

Even British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has gotten involved in the debate about book censorship, as a spokesperson for him offered the leader's thoughts.

As cited by the Daily Mail, the spokesperson said: "When it comes to our rich and varied literary heritage, the Prime Minister agrees with the BFG that we shouldn’t gobblefunk around with words."

"I think it’s important that works of literature and works of fiction are preserved and not airbrushed. We have always defended the right to free speech and expression," they concluded.

Featured image credit: Everett Collection Inc / Alamy

The actor behind The Unknown character in the catastrophic Willy Wonka experience has been unmasked as a 16-year-old girl.

If you've been online recently, you'll be aware of the Willy's Chocolate Experience which was held in Glasgow, Scotland last weekend.

Inspired by the Roald Dahl character and the recent Wonka movie, the website from the event advertised it as indulging "in a chocolate fantasy like never before," adding: "Capture the enchantment."

However, it turned out to be a spectacular failure as parents who paid £35 ($44) for a ticket were met with a near-empty warehouse, actors with AI-written scripts, low-resolution Candyland posters pinned to walls, and tearful kids offered a couple of jelly babies.

Check out some memes from the event:

While there was very little sweet candy in sight, a new mysterious character named The Unknown was introduced into the plot of the experience. The story behind the disturbing character is that they are an evil chocolate maker that lives in the walls of the factory.

A viral video on X (formerly Twitter) shows them sporting a black cloak and silver mask, revealing themselves from behind a mirror as a group of kids squeal in horror.

After days of people discussing the true identity of the bizarre entity, a 16-year-old girl - who goes by the handle @felicia.wishes - came forward on TikTok to reveal it was actually her under the mask.

Watch The Unkown reveal below:

In a three-part TikTok series, the actress revealed that the role was her first-ever paid acting gig, sharing: "So I was approached by the House of Illuminati and I was supposed to be cast as one of the Wonkas," she said while donning her iconic mask. She passed on the lead role after she "did not like" the script that she had been given, and was recast to play The Unknown.

In a second video, Felicia went in-depth about her experience playing the black-caped character. "So on the day of the actual event we just got told to ditch the script and just improvise," she revealed. "And the only direction I got given was to act creepy.

"So I tried to imagine what a man living in the walls would be like," the actress continued, showing the now-viral footage that propelled her into the upper echelons of internet stardom. "Some people loved it, some people hated it, some were left traumatized. Some people had no clue what was going on, including myself."

Felicia opened up about the commotion surrounding her first-ever job with BBC and said that she had a great time despite initially feeling embarrassed.

"At first I was really embarrassed about it. But when we went to the pub after, we were just laughing about it," she told the outlet. "It was so ridiculous it was actually funny. And now it’s become viral, it’s genuinely life-changing and I’m really happy I did it.

"Everybody loves the character and posting about it, so it makes me happy that people can see the funny side," she continued. "There weren’t any rehearsals. I got there early to practice but it hadn’t been set up."

Stuart Sinclair, a father who drove two hours with his three kids and paid $44 a ticket for the event, spoke to CBS News about his experience, sharing that the organizers did a "very, very poor job" of decorating it.

"It was all described as a massive immersive experience, great idea for the kids, chocolate fountains... Just sounded really, really good, a nice day for the children and the family," he said. "And when we got there, as you can see by the pictures and stuff, it just was not that at all. There were four or five props, a few jelly beans for the kids. Half a cup of lemonade. Just was not what was promised whatsoever."

Sinclair shared that his oldest children found it humorous but his four-year-old daughter - who was dressed as Willy Wonka for the occasion - was really upset, adding: "She was telling all her teachers beforehand how she was going to meet Willy Wonka and it didn't really pan out like that."

According to The New York Post, the House of Illuminati shared a now-deleted apology statement, acknowledging that the experience failed to meet expectations.

"Unfortunately last minute we were let down in many areas of our event and tried our best to continue on and push through and now realize we probably should have canceled first thing this morning instead," the statement reportedly said.

Billy Coull, the director of the House of Illuminati, blamed the disaster on "holographic technology" not arriving on time: "My vision of the artistic rendition of a well-known book didn’t come to fruition," per STV News.

"For that, I am absolutely truly and utterly sorry," he said. "There was every intention to hold the event, from the pictures, despite not being in the best light; hopefully you’ll be able to see that there was every intention to hold the event."

Featured image credit: Silver Screen Collection / Getty

1. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events 

Violet - Emily Browning 

2. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Klaus - Liam Aiken 

3. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Sunny - Kara and Shelby Hoffman 

4. Charlie and The Chocolate Factory 

Charlie Bucket - Freddie Highmore 

5. Charlie and The Chocolate Factory 

Augustus Gloop - Philip Wiegratz 

6. Charlie and The Chocolate Factory 

Mike Teavee - Jordan Fry 

7. Charlie and The Chocolate Factory 

Veruca Salt - Julia Winter 

8. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 

Violet Beauregarde - AnnaSophia Robb

 9. Pan's Labyrinth

Ofelia - Ivana Baquero 

10. Golden Compass 

Lyra - Dakota Blue Richards 

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