PremiumHugh Grant reveals he ‘hated’ playing an Oompa Loompa in Wonka
Hugh Grant, 63, one of the leading men of early '00s rom coms, is portraying the role of a sniffy, grumpy Oompa Loompa in Paul King's Wonka. However, he does not seem too happy about playing it.
Last Updated: 03.04 AM, Dec 06, 2023
Hollywood star Hugh Grant is starring in an important role in the much-anticipated confectionary spinoff Wonka. He was cast as a grumpy and sarcastic, yet self-important Oompa Loompa, a member of a fictitious race of dwarf-like people with green hair and orange skin, who love cacao beans and hate caterpillar mash. However, Grant did not really enjoy portraying the role as he recently revealed in a recent press conference after Wonka’s London premiere.
As Oompa Loompas are approximately 20 inches high, Grant’s casting did not bode well with some dwarf actors. As the average adult of an adult with dwarfism is 58 inches, the discord among the actors is understandable as they still do not get the recognition and opportunity they deserve, while actors of normal stature are cast to play short-statured roles using motion capture and visual effects.
Hugh Grant got candid about his feelings playing an Oompa Loompa in Wonka to Metro.uk and other news outlets. He explained the reason behind his dislike as to constantly having multiple cameras and other apparatuses on his face, that would help the animators create the final character look, “It was like a crown of thorns, very uncomfortable.”
The Bridget Jones’ Diary actor admitted to kicking up a huge fuss, “I couldn’t have hated the whole thing more.” Of course, it was not all bad and Grant admitted that it was, “quite fun messing around and trying new lines.” But the nadir of the experience was that he had been unsure as to how to act with his body throughout filming.
He asserted, “Frankly, what I did with my body was terrible, and it’s been all replaced with an animator.” The actor even missed out on the fun of the dancing scenes as all that “was done by the animator.” When asked if he felt the final product of his character was worth it, the actor simply shrugged it off with a “not really.”
Wonka, starring Timothee Chalamet, Hugh Grant, Rowan Atkinson, Sally Hawkins, Matt Lucas, Matthew Baynton, Olivia Colman, Calah Lane, and Paterson Joseph, will be releasing internationally December 6 onwards. It will be dropping in UK and India on December 8 and in the US on December 15, 2023.