Oompa-Loompas

The Oompa-Loompas are a fictional race of people in the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory franchise based on the original book by Roald Dahl. In all versions of the story, they are depicted as little people who form the workforce of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, and are paid in cocoa beans. However, their appearance and backstory change depending on the version.

In the first edition of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the Oompa-Loompas are depicted as dark-skinned African pygmies. This was the source of controversy, and in 1970 the NAACP criticised the story and stated the Oompa-Loompas had overtones of slavery. Dahl insisted the Oompa-Loompas had no racist intent, and rewrote the book, changing the Oompa-Loompa's skin colour to white and changing the origin of the Oompa-Loompas from Africa to the made-up "Loompaland".^[1] The second design was drawn by British illustrator Faith Jaques.^[2]

In the 1971 movie, the Oompa-Loompas are depicted as having orange skin, green pompadour-like hairstyles, and sporting brown shirts and white dungarees.^[1] They were portrayed by dwarf actors Rudy Borgstaller, George Claydon, Malcolm Dixon, Rusty Goffe, Ismed Hassan, Norman McGlen, Angelo Muscat, Pepe Poupee, Marcus Powell, and Albert Wilkinson.^[3]

In the 2005 movie, the Oompa-Loompas are all identical, and they sport red space age jumpsuits. They were all played by Kenyan-British actor Deep Roy.^[4]

In the 2023 prequel Wonka, the Oompa-Loompas are embodied by the solitary "Lofty", who was portrayed by Hugh Grant.^[5] Grant's appearance matches the one of the 1971 Oompa-Loompas, although his character's shortness and orange complexion was made with digital effects.^[6]

The Oompa-Loompas were one of the main inspirations for Despicable Me's Minions.^[7]

In 2017, the spider species Myrmecium oompaloompa was named after the Oompa-Loompas. The name comes from the fact that they were first discovered on cocoa plantations in Brazil.^[8]

In 2023, American musician Jagwar Twin released the single Bad Feeling (Oompa Loompa). The song utilises the lyrics and melody from the refrain of the Oompa-Loompa songs in the 1971 film.^[9] The song reached #36 on the US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs and #33 on the Pop Airplay.^[10][11]

In 2024, Willy's Chocolate Experience, an unlicensed Charlie and the Chocolate Factory event, was held in Glasgow, Scotland. An image of a disgruntled and weary-looking Oompa-Loompa^{[Note 1]} played by actress Kirsty Paterson went viral and subsequently became an internet meme.^[12]

• Roald Dahl revision controversy
• Dwarfism