<Tr> <Th> Budget </Th> <Td> $3 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $4 million </Td> </Tr> <P> Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is a 1971 American musical fantasy film directed by Mel Stuart, and starring Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka . It is an adaptation of the 1964 novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl . Dahl was credited with writing the film's screenplay; however, David Seltzer, who went uncredited in the film, was brought in to re-work the screenplay against Dahl's wishes, making major changes to the ending and adding musical numbers . These changes and other decisions made by the director led Dahl to disown the film . </P> <P> The film tells the story of Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum) as he receives a Golden Ticket and visits Willy Wonka's chocolate factory with four other children from around the world . Filming took place in Munich in 1970, and the film was released by Paramount Pictures on June 30, 1971 . With a budget of just $3 million, the film received generally positive reviews and earned $4 million by the end of its original run . Paramount distributed the film until 1977, and beginning in the 1980s, Warner Bros. assumed control of the rights for home entertainment purposes . The film then made an additional $21 million during its re-release by Warner Bros. under its Family Entertainment banner in 1996 . The film became highly popular in part through repeated television airings and home entertainment sales . In 1972, the film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Score, and Wilder was nominated for a Golden Globe as Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy, but lost both to Fiddler on the Roof . The film also introduced the song "The Candy Man", which went on to become a popular hit when recorded by Sammy Davis Jr . In 2014, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". </P>

Who played the title role in 1971's willy wonka & the chocolate factory