Original Oompa Loompa Returns for Netflix's Wonka's Golden Ticket

Fifty-five years after dancing beside Gene Wilder, Rusty Goffe is pulling the green wig back on.

Goffe, 77, returns as an Oompa Loompa in Netflix's Wonka's Golden Ticket, an unscripted series — meaning real contestants compete rather than actors following a script — which launched on Sept. 23. He appears alongside his son, Ben Goffe, an actor who has appeared in Artemis Fowl Variety.

Goffe played an Oompa Loompa in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory opposite Wilder, who originated the role of Willy Wonka. More than five decades later, he reprises that role during challenges in the new series.

The show puts 12 contestants through nine episodes of factory-style contests. The prize is billed as a lifetime's supply of money, worth approximately $3 million. That figure is calculated as an annual six-figure salary paid over 30 years.

The most talked-about voice in the factory is not a new cast member. It is Wilder, who died in 2016. Netflix partnered with AI firm ElevenLabs to recreate his voice with AI for the series, where it acts as an omniscient narrator heard across the competition Reuters.

Permission was central to that decision. Goffe told Variety the recreation was made with the blessing of Wilder's wife. Netflix has separately stated the re-created voice was made with the consent of Wilder's estate Netflix.

The project sits inside Netflix's wider hold on the story. The streamer has acquired the rights to Roald Dahl's literary estate, which includes the Wonka books behind both the 1971 film and later versions.

Goffe discussed working with his son and with the AI-generated Wilder in an interview with the BBC ahead of launch. The BBC headlined its piece "Oompa Loompa, doompety done: Actor takes final bow" BBC.

What makes this stand out is the mix of old and new. For viewers, this means one familiar orange face from 1971, a family pairing at its centre, and a lead voice from the past rebuilt in a studio.