Where Is Michael Bollner From And What Happened To The Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory Star?

Michael Bollner is a former child actor from Germany who is well known for his role in the 1971 film titled Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. While it has been over 50 years since the iconic movie graced the silver screens of Hollywood, a lot of people from that generation are quite curious to know what became of the actors and actresses who contributed to making the movie one of the most successful motion picture projects of the 1970s. This article focuses on one of the then-child stars in the movie in the person of Michael Bollner.

Michael Bollner is from Germany

Michael Bollner was born on September 14, 1958, which means he is currently 65 years old. The former child star was born in Munich, Germany, under the birth sign of Virgo. Michael Bollner is a German citizen on account of his birth status and parental heritage. His physical features give him the appearance of one from a white caucasian ethnic background. Not much is known about his parents’ identity or what they did for a living to be able to afford the proper care for Bollner as a kid while growing up in Munich.

Obviously, due to his very short-lived time in the spotlight, certain questions about the early life and family background of the former actor such as if he has any siblings and if he does, whether they are still alive, remain unanswered. Michael also prefers to live a very private life and as such, it is a rather challenging task to determine exactly what his life was like as a child.

With regards to his formal education, information about that is limited to the fact that he credits his father with making sure he went ahead with his education after making an appearance in one of the most iconic movies of the 1970s. However, that information is limited in its capacity to reveal the location of these schools. Although if one were to consider the fact that Michael Bollner has lived almost all his life in Munich, Germany, it would not be too much of a stretch to conclude that those aspects of his formal education happened in Munich.

Michael Bollner began his movie career at the age of 13

Michael Bollner was a child actor when he made his first screen appearance. Without taking too much away from his acting abilities, he only managed to appear in a handful of movies, including his most recognized role in the 1971 film titled Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. Sadly, maybe for a lot of people who had hoped he would continue his acting career as an actor, Michael Bollner saw his acting career end as a result of a decision made by his parents to ensure that he got an education.

Michael Bollner played the character of Augustus Gloop in Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory

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Michael Bollner made history in 1971 when he was cast as the gluttonous Augustus Gloop in the iconic Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. After Roald Dahl signed over the rights of his 1964 novel titled Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to Paramount Pictures, the studio got to work, adapting the book’s characters to make the movie in 1971. The movie was eventually released on June 30th, 1971, and featured the likes of Gene Wilder as the iconic chocolate factory owner named Willy Wonka, and Michael Bollner as Augustus Gloop.

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In the original book, author Dahl had sought to shed light on and dole out damning indictments on what he concluded were societal ills, including but not limited to bad parenting, too much television, spoiling children, gluttony, gum-chewing, and self-indulgence. Conversely, the movie added a twist to the story by pointing out that bad children are punished and good children get rewarded, much to Dahl’s disgust.

In keeping with the ethos of the movie, we see a 13-year-old Augustus Gloop, played by Bollner, as he becomes one of five kids who win a golden ticket to go on an excursion at the Wonka Candy Company. While there, the true character of Augustus Gloop comes to the fore as he wasted no time greedily drinking from the chocolate river and failed to heed all the entreaties of his mother to desist from such unhealthy and gluttonous behavior. The pleas and admonitions which fell on deaf ears ended with Augustus Gloop paying the price by falling into the chocolate river, effectively ending the excursion for him.

Sources close to Michael Bollner have revealed that the then child actor didn’t have access to his own dressing room and as a result had to convert his room at home into one. Fortunately for him and the production, Bollner’s home was just a few minutes of walking distance from the set of the movie.

Another notable tidbit about Michael Bollner’s involvement in the movie revolved around the fact that he could only converse in German and the film was in the English language so he required a coach to help him get through his lines. That predicament is now a thing of the past but Bollner himself has reflected that this was a challenge that handicapped his connection with other cast members, such as the late Gene Wilder, who similarly found it challenging to fluently converse in the German language.

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Michael Bollner is currently a tax accountant in Munich

Bollner has recently revealed that he would have loved the opportunity to further explore his acting abilities but that was not to be as he eventually had to quit acting and focus on his education at his father’s behest. Michael Bollner, whose screen appearances today have been limited to Willy Wonka-based reunions, has seen that the education that his father placed so much value on, paid off and in a good way.

He currently works as a tax accountant in the same city where he was born and has lived most of his life. Although he hasn’t really come out to reveal the finer details of his current career, he seems to be quite adept at it and become successful as a result.

Michael Bollner appears to be currently single

Extensive profiling of the former child actor’s personal life hasn’t revealed any family members in the picture. It has shown that Michael Bollner is neither married nor has any children. This picture most likely presents the way it does as a result of Bollner’s apparent decision to keep personal matters private and away from the prying eyes of the public and media.