Johnny Depp is gearing up for what could be a career-defining return, starring as Ebenezer Scrooge in the upcoming film “Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol”, scheduled for release on November 13, 2026. This marks his first major studio film since his six-year exile from Hollywood following highly publicized legal battles with ex-wife Amber Heard.
Paramount Pictures has put Depp in final negotiations to lead “Ebenezer”, a fresh take on Charles Dickens’s classic novel, directed by horror auteur Ti West and scripted by Nathaniel Halpern. Andrea Riseborough is confirmed to co-star, while the studio describes the movie as “a thrilling ghost story set in Dickens’ London, following one man’s supernatural journey to face his past, present and future and fight for a second chance.”
The classic source material centers on Scrooge, a miserly businessman visited by spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, who force him to confront his life and seek redemption. For Depp, this role is a symbolic comeback vehicle — his last major Hollywood studio role was 2018’s “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”, from which he was dropped after intense public scrutiny tied to his defamation case against Heard.
Best known for his performances as Jack Sparrow in “Pirates of the Caribbean”, “Edward Scissorhands”, Mad Hatter in Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland”, and the Oscar-nominated turn in “Finding Neverland”. Depp’s career has been defined by bold character work and commercial success. Playing the cantankerous loner Ebenezer Scrooge shall be right in the actor’s wheelhouse – a promising step for a comeback. For a long time, everyone believes Depp’s career in Hollywood is done and buried. This new project will act as the first true test if the public is ready to receive him again.