If you counted Johnny Depp out of the moviemaking game, you should count again. The controversial star is back at it (again), and he’s taking a very meta-minded swing with his next film, the latest adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol. As Ebenezer Scrooge, Depp will be playing a man of great privilege, who is humbled and forced to confront his own sinful ways of living, at the behest of ghosts who examine his past and present misdeeds, as well as the future it will lead him to.
No one is thick enough not to see the subtext behind Depp’s performance, but there will also be the very surface-level visual aesthetic of it, and we can now confirm that Johnny Depp will once again be completely transforming himself into an eccentric character, who could be his next breakout performance.
Johnny Depp Is Unrecognizable As Ebenezer Scrooge (Photos)
The Daily Mail UK has the exclusive shots of Deep as Scrooge, and boy, are they something. The Pirates of the Caribbean star is a paunch-faced and scraggly-haired elder man, with chin whiskers, thick brows, and wrinkle lines that accentuate his scornful frowning expression. Even more impressive is the Victorian-era costuming by Catherine George (Mickey 17, Succession), which makes Deep’s Scrooge look every bit like the 19th-century cantankerous old lonely miser he was.
In addition to Johnny Deep, the set photos also capture actress Andrea Riseborough (Possessor, Oblivion, Black Mirror) looking pretty freaky as the Ghost of Christmas Past. Her skin and hair are painted to be a dead, translucent white, with contacts to make her eyes look the same, and a wispy white Victorian dress to complete the ghostly aesthetic. The photos are a good reminder that this film, Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol, is being directed by Ti West, the horror filmmaker best known for House of the Devil and the Pearl trilogy with Mia Goth. So expect a darker and scarier take on Scrooge’s journey.
Paramount Pictures is backing the film along with Green Bean Pictures, and additional cast members include Tramell Tillman (Severance), Ian McKellen (Avengers: Doomsday), Rupert Grint (Servant), Daisy Ridley (Star Wars: The Force Awakens), Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games trilogy), and others. Ebenezer is currently set for a release date on November 13th, just in time to lead the 2026 Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday windows.
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