Quaker Oats Made Willy Wonka to Sell Chocolate Bars

By The Backlot

@backlotfriends

Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka, in his purple coat and red top hat, stands with a group of children and adults on the staircase of the chocolate factory.

The 1971 Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory exists because Quaker Oats wanted to sell candy.

The oatmeal company funded the film for $3 million to launch their new Wonka chocolate bars. They insisted on the title change from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to put the Wonka name front and center. Roald Dahl hated that. He also hated the musical numbers, the focus on Wonka over Charlie, and Gene Wilder's casting. He left the project.

The Wonka Bars the film was made to sell had a habit of melting during distribution. They were recalled.

The movie itself survived. Gene Wilder made Wonka one of cinema's great unanswerable characters. The film is back in theaters August 2 for its 55th anniversary. It holds up in a way that no candy bar ever could.

Quick Facts

Quaker Oats Made Willy Wonka to Sell Chocolate Bars

DirectorMel Stuart

CastPeter Ostrum, Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson, Roy Kinnear, Julie Dawn Cole

GenreFamily, Fantasy, Comedy

Release1971-06-29

Runtime100 min

Rated7.5/10

Instagram caption

Willy Wonka (1971) was made by an oatmeal company to launch a chocolate bar. The bars were recalled. The film hits theaters again August 2. #WillyWonka #Backlot

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Quaker Oats funded Willy Wonka to sell chocolate bars. The bars were recalled. The film is back for its 55th anniversary on August 2. #WillyWonka #Backlot

The 1971 Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory exists because Quaker Oats wanted to sell candy.

The Wonka Bars the film was made to sell had a habit of melting during distribution. They were recalled.