^^^^For what it's worth, I think Courtney Love fucking rocked in People VS Larry Flynt, though I suppose that's a different thread altogether.
I haven't seen Marilyn Manson act, he may be fantastic for all I know--to be honest though, I think he's probably too dark for Willy Wonka. What I loved so much about Gene Wilder's performance was that there was always the hint of the sinister but it was never anything in your face. I actually think it was the best performance of his I've ever seen, as everything else I've seen of his tends to be more bottom-feeder comedy.
Johnny Depp is enormously resourceful as an actor though--his Edward Scissorhands is a million miles away from his Ed Wood, who is again a million miles away from the character he played in Pirates Of The Carribean. And I think he has exactly the right quality as an actor to play sinister while still acceptable to a mainstream audience.
I'm looking forward to this, even if just to see how it compares with the original..