Summary

• Willy Wonka quotes originated in Roald Dahl's novel and are iconic, entertaining, and eccentric expressions of his character.
• Gene Wilder's portrayal in the 1971 film set the stage for Johnny Depp and Timothée Chalamet to later play the role in remakes and prequels.
• Wonka's whimsical and magical personality is a mix of eccentricity, humor, and wisdom, making for memorable and quotable moments in the films.

Willy Wonka is one of the most iconic film characters of all time, and many of the more memorable Willy Wonka quotes actually originate in Roald Dahl's original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory novel. First and most memorably seen on screen in the classic 1971 family film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, the unique and entertaining character was brought to life thanks to Gene Wilder's unforgettable performance. The film follows a group of children who are granted access to access a wondrous candy factory by the eccentric Wonka thanks to golden tickets hidden in candy.

Since then, Johnny Depp played the character in a 2005 remake, and Timothée Chalamet in a 2023 prequel. When it comes to Roald Dahl's huge library of characters, Willy Wonka stands out as the strongest and most memorable of the bunch. He's eccentric and over-the-top, but underneath it all, he shows a level of heart, kindness, and whimsical magic that makes him so much fun to watch. Wonka is unnerving, hilarious, and incomprehensible all at once. His other-worldly behavior makes for some great one-liners and endlessly quotable moments from the films.

30 “I’m Sorry, But All Questions Must Be Submitted In Writing.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

One of the funniest aspects of Willy Wonka in both the books and the movies is that he tends to brush off everyone’s questions or concerns to continue sharing his vision of a candy factory. He doesn’t want to ruin the presentation by answering questions about how things work or where they come from. He also has his plans down pat and wants nothing to distract from them, especially questions that could put a hold on how he wants his special event to play out.

That’s why, any time one of the group asks a question he doesn’t want to answer, he comes up with a new way to ignore the question. In this case, he flippantly comments it needs to be in writing, knowing that they don't have time to do that. For him, this es as corporate business-speak.

29 "May I Present, Willy Wonka's Wild And Wonderful Wishy-Washy Wonka Walker!"

Wonka (2023)

"Please, don't make me say that again."

It is no secret after watching the original movies that Willy Wonka often gets so excited that he can't say things right all the time because he just wants to get his ideas out into the world. Even a young Wonka does this, but at that time, he is not quite as self-aware. In Wonka, he introduces the people in the house he lives in to his newest contraption. This is called the "Wild and Wonderful Wishy-Washy Wonka Walker."

Willy Wonka has a job a physically taxing job and a laundry, so he makes this contraption to clean for him using a dog running in place and many moveable gears and pulleys. It is quite an impressive feat, and something fans of Wallace and Gromit would appreciate. He does it to ensure he has time to do what he wants to do, make chocolate. However, after delivering his hilarious name for the device, he realizes it is so difficult that he doesn't want to say it again.

28 “Oh, You Have Questions? Let Me Drop Everything.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

Like the Willy Wonka quote about people putting all questions in writing, this line is also meant as a way to actually deter questions being asked of him. Instead of finding a roundabout way to put off the questions, Wonka gets highly sarcastic and extremely rude about it instead. At this point in the story of Charlie’s visit to the chocolate factory, Mr. Wonka has already made his stance on questions clear, so he’s no longer even pretending that he’s going to offer up explanations.

It’s one of the ways Dahl’s story is able to keep an air of mystery around the chocolate maker, while also showing that he won't let anyone deter him from his ultimate mission. While it might make Wonka seem rude, it is also a way to show how turned off he is by all these questions, that are distracting from the journey he arranged for the kids.

27 “Oh, You Should Never, Never, Doubt What Nobody Is Sure About.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

At first, this particular quote from Willy Wonka appears to be completely nonsensical. That’s not the case, though. This is one of the times when word choice is used to make the character sound slightly off, but Wonka makes a good point. He suggests that if no one is sure about something, and if no one knows the answer to something, there’s probably a reason for that.

Of course, he says it flippantly and moves along, so no one really has time to process what he’s saying. In the end, this is a Willy Wonka quote that shows how he has always lived his life. He never takes anything for granted and believes that he can do and achieve anything. Even if people say it isn't possible, he will take the chance and will often prove everyone wrong.

26 “A Whangdoodle Would Eat Ten Oompa-Loompas For Breakfast And Think Nothing Of It.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

Just where the Oompa-Loompas are from and how they end up working with Willy Wonka is one of the mysteries of his story. The movies only reveal parts of their history, and each of the three tells very different tales. The novels claim they are from Africa and the earlier movies claim South America or the Amazon. Some theories claim they are aliens from another planet. Much of the lore doesn't necessarily make sense.

That's because other things, like a "whangdoodle" are introduced to their story. Like Oompa-Loompas, whangdoodles are fictional, so all that's really known about them is that they are large enough to eat 10 Oompa-Loompas and come back for more. This is why Willy Wonka claims he needed to help save them from the dangers of their home, wherever that home may be.

25 “Don’t Forget What Happened To The Man Who Suddenly Got Everything He Wanted… He Lived Happily Ever After.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

Despite the many creepy moments in the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory movie (and Dahl's novel), the truth is that the story of Willy Wonka finding someone to take over his business has a happy ending. Charlie and his family finally have financial stability thanks to Wonka's successful line of products while Wonka has someone he can trust to take over.

The entire movie saw Willy Wonka letting each child and parent, one by one, do something selfish, greedy, or wrong. It seemed like he would never find his successor. However, that moment happened when Charlie did the one thing that proved he was good at heart. The scene in the glass elevator in which Willy Wonka and Charlie Bucket discuss the prize makes the movie a happy one, both for Charlie and the audience in general.

24 "I'm Making Chocolate, Of Course. How Do You Like It? Dark? White? Nutty? Absolutely Insane?"

Wonka (2023)

In Wonka, fans finally see how Willy Wonka came to become the great chocolate maker by finding the best ways to make delicious and ridiculous chocolates. He also has an excited energy about him that makes his chocolate-making so fun, as well as so addictive for him. When the orphan Noodle walks in and sees him sitting with a science set, working hard on something, she asks what he is doing.

Of course, Wonka can't just give her the answer in a normal way. Instead, he offers up his ion in an over-the-top manner that says everything anyone needs to know about the character. He wants to offer the young girl a chocolate, no matter what kind she likes, from dark and white to those with nuts, to those that are "absolutely insane." When looking at his various chocolates from this movie as well as the originals, this describes what he does best in his factory.

23 “The Best Kind Of Prize Is A SUR-prise!”

Charlie And The Chocolate Factory (2005)

Though many of Willy Wonka's best quotes are meant to unnerve the visitors to the chocolate factory or be just unsettling enough to make them wonder about the character, some of his quotes also demonstrate how great he is at wordplay. This particular pun highlights that. Sometimes, Wonka makes creepy jokes, but other times, he makes dad jokes, keeping the audience slightly off balance, but always entertained.

In this instance, it comes from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory after Violet turns into a blueberry and has to leave. Wonka is almost taunting the kids at this point, and his line about the "surprise" is in response to Violet's terrible surprise, which makes Willy deliver the creepy laugh he has throughout the movie. He also makes sure that Veruca and Mike know they are annoying him, which will lead to their own surprises later in the movie.

22 “No, No, Don’t Speak. For Some Moments In Life, There Are No Words. Run Along Now.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

“Adieu adieu, parting is such sweet sorrow.”

Just as Willy Wonka likes to do his best to ignore questions, he also does his best to ignore protests, concerns, and any other comments that aren't praising his work. That's especially true when each of the children on the tour of his chocolate factory finds themselves having an accident due to their own selfish disregard for his warnings. His lack of concern for them is reflected in this particular line when he dismisses one of them and continues on with the next part of the tour.

This moment is actually even more disturbing. After Mike is shrunk down and is small enough to fit into his mother's purse, she begins to swoon and falls, only for the Oompa-Loompas to catch her. As she is clearly out of it after seeing what happened to her son, Wonka buds her "adieu" as the Oompa-Loompas carry her out of the room and out of the story.

21 “Invention Is 93% Perspiration, 6% Electricity, 4% Evaporation, And 2% Butter Scotch Ripple.”

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

One of the often-ed Willy Wonka quotes is this one about what goes into Willy Wonka's work. Though the line is certainly meme-able, what's usually ed about this is that Wonka's percentages exceed 100. Even one of the parents points out that it equals 105%, to which Wonka just responds by saying, "Yes" before moving on. He's a candyman, not a mathematician, and just as he rankles at questions, Wonka has no time for his guests' arguments or contradictions.

Furthermore, it's an impossible combination just like so many of Wonka's other impossible concoctions — and yet they always seem to come out perfect. The bad math and wacky inventions perfectly fit with his personality, even if not every person who watches him is going to the exact numbers or combination of traits that Wonka uses, which is probably his point.