Warning! The following contains spoilers for the first few episodes of Wonka's The Golden Ticket. Stream the series with a Netflix subscription and read at your own risk!I've been eager to watch Wonka's The Golden Ticket ever since its confusion-causing first announcement, even though my least-favorite Big Brother player briefly appears. I've dreamed of entering Willy Wonka's factory ever since I first saw the 1971 movie, and as envious as I may be of the contestants who got to play, I really gotta talk about the show's use of AI to "bring back" Gene Wilder, who died in 2016. Readers may have already been aware of the show catch flak for using AI technology to recreate the late actor's voice for the purposes of narrating the show, more or less. I had to watch and see if it elevated or diminished my opinion of the series, and while I ultimately I found it unnecessary, it wasn't for the reason I would've guessed. (Image credit: Netflix)The AI Wonka Is A Weird Distraction Within An Otherwise Great ProductionWonka's The Golden Ticket uses its AI Gene Wilder to introduce some of its competitions and serve as an overall narrator to the program. Most of the time, he's heard over an intercom to give the illusion that he's watching everything go down from inside his office. Unfortunately, the execution is just not there. The AI voice waffles between moments where it sounds like Wilder, but the delivery feels stiff and unlike an actor's delivery. Other times, it doesn't sound like Wilder at all, which makes me question why they didn't just hire a soundalike actor to do it. It's also worth noting that the inclusion of the voice feels forced, as Wonka's The Golden Ticket often enlisted a regular computer voice to serve in his place, or even a celebrity like Nick Cannon. It makes the AI voice feel redundant and shoehorned in simply because someone decided Gene Wilder's voice needs to be in there. It's a shame that it is such a distraction, because so much work was put into creating this game and making one of the most impressive reality television sets I've ever seen. It seems clear that Netflix wants to continue using this set for future shows on the platform, but I hope producers reconsider the Wonka voice. (Image credit: Netflix)I'd Rather Hear A New Willy Wonka, Or See Someone Playing Charlie BucketI think the thing that aggravates me the most is that there's an insistence on this series being straight out of Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory, but that would mean Wonka would no longer own the factory. For accuracy, they'd need Charlie Bucket to be the owner, and for his jerk of a grandpa, Joe, to be meddling in the background. More On Willy WonkaI'm A Big Fan Of Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, But Wonka Is My New Favorite Willy Wonka MovieIf it's necessary that Willy Wonka be a part of this, then why not just recast the actor? I love Gene Wilder, but we've already seen both Johnny Depp and Timothée Chalamet play the iconic character in more recent years. Would it really be such an affront to bring in a celebrity to play the famed owner of the fictional candy factory? I don't think so, and if Wonka's The Golden Ticket wanted to, they could even invite back Nick Cannon and other famous faces to play Willy Wonka in the meantime. I think that would be a fun twist, and I'd be eager to see how others play the role whilst watching the game unfold. Complaints aside, Wonka's The Golden Ticket is a great watch, and I can't wait for new episodes on Wednesdays. The game has some surprisingly good gameplay on par with some of the best reality shows I've seen, and I hope that stays the case as this season continues.