'Wonka' director Paul King says Timothee Chalamet sings just like Bing Crosby.

The actor stars as Willy Wonka in the new movie - which is a prequel to 1971 film 'Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory' - and King has admitted he was amazed to hear Timothee sing because he sounds just like 'White Christmas' star Bing.

In an interview with Total Film, King explained: "[He has] got a beautiful singing voice. The person it reminded me of was Bing Crosby. There’s quite a range because it does go from a couple of bigger, showstopper-y sort of things, to moments of real, pure emotion, and he can do it all … I’m going to sound like a crazed fan."

The film is a new story based around Roald Dahl's 1964 novel 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' and features big song and dance numbers - but King is adamant it's not really a musical.

He added to the publication: "The Oompa Loompas sing a lot in the book, and Dahl always uses poetry. But I didn’t want it to just become a musical where people are singing dialogue to each other for no discernible reason. I felt like it was more like a movie with songs than a musical."

King previously admitted his lead actor didn't have to audition for the role because the director was sure he was perfect for the part of Willy Wonka.

He told Rolling Stone magazine: "It was a straight offer because he’s great, and he was the only person in my mind who could do it. But because he’s Timothee Chalamet and his life is so absurd, his high school musical performances are on YouTube and have hundreds of thousands of views. So I knew from stanning for Timmy Chalamet that he could sing and dance really well."