Both the book and its two movie counterparts have many perceived villains. But, when you think about it, none of them are actually villains in the first place, according to CrassTalk.com.
The original movie was released in 1971. Slugworth (played by Günter Meisner), the obvious culprit, is actually just a moral test placed in the children’s way by Willy Wonka.
You could also consider Willy Wonka (played by Gene Wilder) a villain; but in the end he is just trying to find an heir to his empire. The true villain in the series is Grandpa Joe (played by Jack Albertson).
In the film adaptation of the classic Roald Dahl children’s novel Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, five kids win a “Golden Ticket” that allows them to tour Willy Wonka’s wondrous chocolate factory.
More than four decades later, those kids are all grown up — and chatted with TODAY about their everlasting gobstoppers of memories.