Hugh Grant became a heartthrob in the 90s with his charismatic personality in films such as Sense and Sensibility, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, and other films. Recently he has started venturing out into genres that he is usually not associated with such as thrillers, dark comedies, and fantasy films. His projects such as Cloud Atlas, Paddington 2, The Gentlemen, The Undoing, and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves prove that he is ready to explore and branch out his range as an actor.
He has an upcoming release with Wonka, led by Timothée Chalamet. The casting of Grant as Oompa-Loompa has been a divisive one that has led fans to question the decision to cast him as the character. Now, the director of the film has voiced his opinions about why he chose him for the role.
Director Paul King Knew Hugh Grant Would Nail Oompa-Loompa
Timothée Chalamet starrer Wonka is gearing up for release on December 15, 2023. The film also has Hugh Grant playing Oompa-Loompa, which is an odd yet interesting casting. Fans were obviously confused and questioned why Grant was chosen for the role when the first trailer was released. Now, the director of the film Paul King has addressed the so-called ‘controversial’ casting of Grant in the film (via CinemaBlend),
“I was enchanted by the idea of these impossibly tiny beings, far smaller even than the child-sized me. The voice and the attitude of the Oompa Loompa came from revisiting the books – long songs full of humor, sarcasm, superiority, and scorn. So it was really just thinking about that character – someone who can be a real shit.
And I went, ‘Ah, Hugh [Grant]!’ Because he’s the funniest, most sarcastic shit that I’ve ever met! We’d been there before with Paddington 2. I had to write him this awkward letter, saying, ‘You’re good at playing washed-up, old hams…’ Once you see Hugh Grant as an 18-inch high orange man with green hair, you go, ‘Ah, yes. I know what Oompa Loompas are. It all makes perfect sense”
Grant saw the scope and potential of what Grant could do as an actor while working together in Paddington 2. Thus playing a role like Oompa-Loompa would be an easy feat for Grant according to King as he saw similar characteristics between the character and Grant.
The Backlash Around Hugh Grant’s Casting in Wonka
Oompa-Loompas are humanettes who are part dolls-part humans. They are short creatures that assist Willy Wonka in Roald Dahl’s book. Thus, the casting of Hugh Grant as the character received a significant level of criticism because the role should have been portrayed by an actor with dwarfism. In addition to fans, actors with the condition (including George Coppen) are condemning the casting as snatching one of the rare opportunities that they could have gotten in Hollywood. Coppen told the BBC,
“A lot of actors [with dwarfism] feel like we are being pushed out of the industry we love. A lot of people, myself included, argue that dwarfs should be offered everyday roles in dramas and soaps, but we aren’t getting offered those roles. One door is being closed but they have forgotten to open the next one. They’ve enlarged his head so his head looks bigger. [I thought] what the hell have you done to him? I will have you know that I am a perfectly respectful size for an Oompa-Loompa”.
Coppen’s views expose the unfair treatment and the undermining of differently-abled people in the Hollywood system. The role that would have been perfectly suited for people like Coppen is given to A-listers like Grant while leaving them jobless and underutilized in the industry.
It remains to be seen how Grant contributes to the role when Wonka opens in theaters on December 15, 2023.
Sources: CinemaBlend, BBC
