The messy Willy Wonka Experience in Scotland has now inspired a horror movie based on one character named “The Unknown”, who has a strange connection to the famous chocolatier. It’s quite common for the horror genre to take inspiration from real-life events, and with the fast spread of information nowadays, filmmakers are on the lookout for situations, people, and stories that could make a great horror movie. The most recent example is the Willy Wonka Experience, a disastrous “immersive experience” that ended up becoming the subject of countless memes and complaints around the world.
Seizing the new popularity of Willy Wonka thanks to Paul King’s Wonka movie, starring Timothée Chalamet, event organizer House of Illuminate put together a supposedly “immersive experience” in Glasgow. The event’s AI-generated marketing material promised a colorful experience based on Wonka with chocolate fountains, giant candy canes, and more, but attendees were shocked to arrive at a sparsely decorated warehouse with scattered plastic props, a small bouncy castle, and confused actors who did their best to give children a not-so-sad experience. Now, a horror movie inspired by this disaster is in the works, based on one specific character: The Unknown.
Willy Wonka Is A Serial Killer Theory Explained
Willy Wonka’s eccentric nature and indifferent attitudes to the children have led to a popular theory that Wonka is actually a child serial killer.
The Unknown Was Supposed To Be Willy Wonka’s Rival
Attendees of the Willy Wonka Experience weren’t the only ones who were scammed, as so were the actors hired for the event. The actors were shocked when they arrived at the place and none of the props and special effects they were promised to bring their characters to life were there. Actors did what they could with what they had to make the situation less terrible for the children, and among the Willy Wonkas and Oompa Loompas was a character named “The Unknown”. The actors were given an AI-generated script that they described as “gibberish”, and it offers details about The Unknown.
The character went viral as it was a young actress wearing a black cloak, and a silver mask, who was hiding behind a mirror. The Unknown isn’t a character from Roald Dahl’s books nor any of the Willy Wonka movies made so far, and instead, it was an original creation for the event. According to BBC, the script described The Unknown as an evil rival chocolate maker who lives in walls and was looking to steal Wonka’s “Anti-Graffiti Gobstopper”.
With no real direction, what the actress did with the character was jump from behind the mirror to startle the kids, with one of the Willy Wonka actors coming up with a storyline where, if the children “pulled a silly face” at The Unknown, the character would hide back. However, the mask and the actress’ moves truly made The Unknown into a creepy character, which is why it became a viral sensation and the main source of inspiration for a movie also titled The Unknown.
How Willy Wonka Experience’s The Unknown Fits The Movie
Despite The Unknown having the appearance of a horror movie villain, the biggest question is how it fits into the movie of the same name. The Unknown is being produced by Kaledonia Pictures and is planned for a late 2024 release date. There’s no director attached to the project yet nor any actors cast, either, but the synopsis explains The Unknown will follow a “renowned illustrator” and his wife who are “haunted by the tragic death of their son, Charlie”. As a way to escape their grief, they leave for the remote Scottish Highlands, where “an unknowable evil awaits them.”
It’s unknown how much of The Unknown’s story from the Willy Wonka Experience will be kept for the movie and thus how it will connect to this grieving couple. The Unknown could still be a creepy presence hiding in the walls and tormenting the main characters, but that still leaves the question of whether there’s a connection between this villain and the death of Charlie or not. The filmmakers could even go on a more symbolic route and make The Unknown a metaphor for grief, leaving behind all connections to the disastrous Willy Wonka Experience.
Wonka
Wonka is a prequel film to Roald Dahl’s classic novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and follows the origins of the legendary candy maker. From his first encounter with the Oompa Loompas to founding his deliciously magnificent headquarters, Wonka explores the character in a new light. Timothee Chalamet assumes the role of Willy Wonka himself.
- Director
- Paul King
- Release Date
- December 15, 2023
- Cast
- Sally Hawkins , Olivia Colman , Keegan-Michael Key , Rowan Atkinson , Timothee Chalamet , Jim Carter
- prequel(s)
- Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory , Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
