For the third week in a row, the Tim Burton and Johnny Depp version of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” is still being consumed by the masses. I’m unsure if it’s related, but I’ve seen an uptick of Johnny Depp’s Willy Wonka-inspired content on TikTok, so perhaps Gen Z has been on a nostalgia trip with a childhood favorite.
I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” came out 17 years ago, so that film’s target audience is now at the age where they have children of their own. Chances are, they’re showing this to them, as their version of the story. Sorry, Gene Wilder.
In a surprising turn, the film “Riverdance: The Animated Adventure” showed up as the 7th most-watched film this week. Growing up, I remember being captivated by “Riverdance” after it exploded in popularity following the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, but never in my wildest dreams would I have predicted that it would not only get an animated movie but that it would be one of the most popular films on Netflix upon release. The story follows a young Irish-born boy named Keegan and his Spanish-born friend Moya who learn to dance through danger and despair with a magical herd of spirit deer.
It’s … fine. But if kids are loving it, my opinion truly doesn’t matter.
