- This article is about the 2005 film character, you might be looking for the 1971 character or book character.
- "A retard could figure it out."
— Mike on his strategy for finding the Golden Ticket
Mike Teavee is one of the four main antagonists of the 2005 film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He is the fourth and last child to be eliminated from Willy Wonka's tour.
Mike is one of the five winners of the Golden Tickets, being the fourth, and he follows Violet Beauregarde.
Background[]
Mike with his father
He is from the city of Denver, Colorado and his time outside of school is spent watching television and playing violent video games including first-person shooters. In the book, it is mentioned his parents also allow him to watch violent films, such as one where gangsters are murdering other gangsters with machine guns. The book also mentions Mike has a collection of toy guns, and he wishes to be a gangster himself when he's older.
Mike proves to be both economically and scientifically literate. Even when he was a baby, he had his eyes on his father's accountant work. He found his golden ticket by analyzing both the Nikkei Index and the date codes of the other ticket finds, offset by the weather that day, and then calculating the location of the next ticket, thus requiring him to purchase only a single Wonka Bar.
He is also apparently very intelligent that his parents can’t understand him. His father, a high school geography teacher, accompanied him to the factory.
Film[]
Mike and his father during the tour
Mike wins the fourth Golden Ticket, which is ironic as he hates chocolate.
Of the brats, he stays with the group the longest, as Augustus Gloop, Violet Beauregarde and Veruca Salt already succumb.
In shock from watching the exploding candy parade, Mike said that he wants to pick a button, and Willy Wonka, in a state of daze, allows him to do so. Mike selects the Television Room button. Willy Wonka tells the guests about his new invention, which shrinks down items and broadcasts them.
Willy Wonka explains that he will utilize the machine to send chocolate to the public via their television sets, a phenomenon that Willy Wonka refers to as "Television Chocolate".
Mike scoffs at such a claim, branding it as absurd and proceeding to tell Willy Wonka that he understands nothing of science. After a demonstration proves that the invention is indeed a success, Mike begins to stare at the machine's potential possibility as a teleporter capable of transporting entire people to different locations and rushes to test his hypothesis first-hand against Willy Wonka's wishes. The end result is Mike being shrunken so small, his voice sounds squeaky and high-pitched. He suggests being put through in reverse, only to be told that the process is a one-way trip. Willy Wonka suggests Mike be put in the taffy puller to get him back to normal size.
However, the Oompa Loompas overstretch Mike and he leaves the factory 10 feet tall and completely thin.
Personality[]
"DIE! DIE! DIE!"
Mike acts like he is smarter than everybody, although considering he developed a strategy to find a Golden Ticket by buying only one candy bar, he is probably is a prodigy who is smarter than most people. He has a skeptical nature and initially didn’t believe in Willy Wonka's "Television Chocolate" invention.
However, there are some aspects about Mike which can be seen as foolish, and how he overestimates his own intelligence. For example, after three times, he never seems to keep in mind that there is a pattern of children giving into their temptations and trying to exert control over Wonka, which seems to occur with every new room with apparent pre-planned choreographed songs about each child, which results in them leaving the tour. A smart child would notice the pattern and adjust their behavior.
Mike also knows there is a special prize at the end of Wonka's tour, yet he makes blunt comments and questions towards Wonka, to which Wonka calls him a mumbler. It is possible Wonka is trying to hint at Mike to change his attitude, but Mike doesn't catch on. Near the end of the tour, Mike doesn't even try to get on Wonka's good side anymore, saying candy is stupid and later calling him an idiot. Ironically, Mike idiotically tries to transport himself using Wonka's technology which is incredibly dangerous.
This version of Mike is much more aggressive and antagonistic than his 1971 counterpart. He is angry, repeatedly screaming, violently pushing and yelling in the movie. Mike’s behavior are implied to be the result of bad parenting. His parents did not seem to raise him properly, leaving technology, games and media to parent him, and it is unclear if they ever spent much quality time or affection with him. The only feelings he shows in the movie are anger, aggressiveness and hatred.
Mike is also depicted as correcting people, though whether or not it is because he wants to show off, correct misinformation, or a bit of both is unclear. He seems to want to be in the spotlight, showing his selfish and stubborn side.
Appearance[]
Before the stretching, Mike was normal with wiry short brown hair and fair skin with rosy cheeks. He has brown eyes.
When he was being interviewed, he wore a gray bleeding skull shirt under a long-sleeved black shirt, dark gray lounge pants, and black Converse sneakers.
The day he went to the factory, he briefly wore a black and red jacket. Underneath the jacket was a black skull t-shirt over a long-sleeved red shirt, very dark cornflower blue jeans, and black Converse sneakers.
He wears dark goggles in the TV room.
Relationships[]
His father - Mike and his father's relationship is sort of strained. His father doesn't really understand the new technology Mike likes and how he doesn't spend time in school. But his father does care for him when he got shrunk down, but apparently due to his hands-off style of parenting, Mr. Teavee does not try to rescue Mike for quite a while.
Willy Wonka - He thinks that Willy Wonka is an idiot because of the new invention Willy Wonka made. Willy pretends to think Mike is mumbling (when in reality, he couldn’t care less what a smart-aleck know-it-all kid like him has to say). He also comes off as a hypocrite saying all Wonka thinks about is chocolate and "Candy is a waste of time" when all he himself does is play video games and watch TV. It is clearly shown that Mike hates Willy Wonka, because of how "he doesn't understand science", going as far as to refuse a high five from him.
Charlie Bucket - He only interacts with him about candy in Wonka's glass elevator as friends and gets along fairly but this ended because Charlie and his family are usually disliking Mike because of his hatred of chocolate and being a brat.
Veruca Salt - In the final version, he never says a word to her though in a deleted scene, when Veruca demands a Oompa Loompa from her father Mike makes fun of her which causes her to glare at him intensely which makes her to go cry later and also in a another deleted scene, Mike ruined her dress by spilling some chocolate fudge type of substance on her dress which made her yell at him, Veruca also gets revenge and rudely pushes him out of her way and a Veruca calls him a Idiot at the square candies that look round room (a deleted room and scene). When Veruca is getting viciously attacked by the squirrels, Mike can be seen panicking looking at her demise, implying he cares about her welfare to a degree anyway.
Trivia[]
- In the original 1964 book, Mike is 9 years old. However, in the 2005 film, he is said to be 13, as mentioned in a newspaper prop and the script.
- At the age of 13, Mike is the oldest child of the tour.
- In the book, Wonka claims Mike is very lucky for being stretched to 10 feet tall, as it means every basketball team in the country will want him.
- Veruca Salt is the only person that Mike cares about (that is surprising since they had unfriendly interactions with each other in the movie) but it is clearly seen when Veruca gets attacked by squirrels.
- Mike is the one among the children to get bored the fastest and the most during the tour.
- Mike only interacted with Charlie once in the Great Glass Elevator.
- He and Charlie are the only children to go in the Great Glass Elevator.
- Charlie and Veruca is the only child who he interacts with - he does not interact with Augustus or Violet at all.
- His last name resembles the word TV, which is a pun on his love for the appliance.
- He, along with Veruca, are the only children that are quite nice or neutral to Charlie at all.
- He is the only eliminated child to visit every room in the factory on the tour.
Quotes[]
- "All you had to do was track the manufacturing dates, offset by weather and the derivative of the Nikkei Index. A retard could figure it out."
- "DIE! DIE! DIE!"
- "I don't know, I hate chocolate."
- "Dad, he said enjoy."
- "Back off, you little freaks!" (This quote was cut from some releases.)
- "Why is everything in here completely pointless?"
- "You think he's (Willy Wonka) a genius, but he's an idiot! But I'm not."
- "I hate reality shows."
- "Just put me back in the other way!" (Mike’s last words)
Mike's Song[]
Mike's song is a tribute to punk rock. The song, derived from the book, talks about how Mike watches television too much and how it could affect your brain (depending on what you're watching). It also talks about how just because he watches a lot of TV, it doesn't mean he knows everything and how the television is not always right. In the original book, the song discussed how reading is better than TV because it fosters imagination and knowledge on the things you watch on TV or play in video games, but this was cut from the song in the film due to length. The song is particularly relevant to Mike, as he failed to use his imagination when it came to the possible consequences of what being teleported could do.
The most important thing that we've ever learned
The most important thing we've learned
as far as children are concerned
Is never, never let them near the television set
Or better still, just don't install the idiotic thing at all
Never, never let them (x2)
(Rock instrumental)
Never, never let them (x2)
It rots the senses in the head!
It keeps imagination dead!
It clogs and clutters up the mind!
It makes a child so dull and blind!
So dull, so dull
He can no longer understand
A fairy-tale, a fairyland!
A fairyland, a fairyland!
His brain becomes as soft as cheese!
His thinking powers rust and freeze!
He cannot think! He only sees...
Regarding little Mike Teavee
We very much regret that we (regret that we)
Shall simply have to wait and see
And see! (x5)
We very much regret that we
Shall simply have to wait and see
If we can get him back to size
But if we can't
It serves him right
External links[]
Gallery[]
| Characters |
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Golden Ticket winners
Augustus Gloop (1971) Families
GLOOP: Mrs. Gloop (1971) • Mr. Gloop (1971) Other characters Arthur Slugworth • Fickelgruber • Lofty • Mr. Turkentine • Mr. Wilkinson • Noodle • Oompa-Loompa • Prince Pondicherry • Prodnose • The Shopkeeper
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