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The biggest story of the week has been the absolutely wild case of the failed “Wonka” themed entertainment event in Scotland that completely went off the rails. The event left those who paid for tickets furious, children weeping, and every new video we see is another AI-infused cringeworthy goldmine. There’s really only one thing left to do, make a movie of the whole thing, and Karen Gillan wants in on it.
This week police were called to an event in Scotland that was billed as an immersive themed experience in the vein of Willy Wonka, called Willy’s Chocolate Experience. It had no official licensing or a connection to either the classic Gene Wilder Wonka or the recent Timothee Chalamet Wonka, but still used very clear references in its concept art. Tickets had been sold based on AI-generated artwork that promised a spectacle, but when ticket holders arrived they found simple props, few sweets, and characters spouting nonsensical gibberish. It’s so bizarre that Karen Gillan is seemingly obsessed and wants to be part of a movie based on the story. She took to Twitter saying…
PLEASE CAST ME IN THIS. (like a movie based on this story, not the actual thing. Actually, no, either is fine)
Honestly, I’m already ready for this movie. I just want to know how in the world something like this happens. I’m a big fan of themed entertainment, from theme parks to escape rooms to anything that tries to put you inside a story, and I want to get the full story of just what in the world led to this bizarre event happening. Was it a case of terrible planning or an actual attempt at a scam? This combined with the recreating of these terrible and hilarious videos would make a movie a must-see. Maybe Karen Gillan can play the really depressed Oompa Loompa working the meth lab set.
The Oompa Loompa from the knock off Wonka land experience looks like she’s running a literal meth lab and is seriously questioning the life choices up until this point. If you scripted this, I would say it was too on the nose pic.twitter.com/WwkGO8HjckFebruary 27, 2024
The AI artwork made some pretty big promises and so either something went wrong in the planning and design phase, preventing them from being able to deliver, or the artwork completely exaggerated what was happening and nothing like that was ever planned. But either way, there was simply no way this wasn’t going to end badly. Which makes one wonder why it happened at all. Most if not all ticket holders have received refunds, and it would have been easier to do that before the event by just canceling it and avoiding the bad press, which is now likely so much worse than anybody ever dreamed.
The organizer of Willy’s Chocolate Experience has apologized for the vision of the event not coming to fruition. The actor who played Wonka has also given his side of the story, largely disavowing the entire event. With refunds issued and the experience closed, that is likely the end of it all. But who knows? If interest keeps up, maybe a movie is in the future. The Fyre Festival has two documentaries, surely this is good enough for one movie on a streaming platform. And there’s at least one actress who casting directors can call first.