Looks like Johnny Depp is back.
The star, who has largely been working outside the mainstream Hollywood system in recent years, took the stage during Paramount’s CinemaCon screening on Thursday to debut his new film. Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol.
Depp stepped out to Alex Warren’s hit “Ordinary,” wearing his signature hat, sunglasses and scarf, and received a standing ovation from the room of theater owners and distributors as he thanked them for the support and told them he loved them.
He explained that he was obsessed Christmas carol “Since I was a little kid,” and when he was first approached, his immediate thought was that no one could match what Reginald Owen did in the original film in the 1930s.
“But that’s no reason not to try something,” Depp continued, praising director T. West for doing “something very special. I was kind of laughing.” The star then showed some footage, in which Depp looks unrecognizable – reminiscent of Jim Carrey’s character in the film. Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events. He has grown grey, has a sharp nose and ancient features, yet there is still some of Jack Sparrow’s swagger. The classic story unfolds, with Scrooge spouting a lot of “nonsense” and seeking to be left alone, until he is haunted by three spirits who make him change his ways.
The cast includes Andrea Riseborough as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Trammell Tillman as the Ghost of Christmas Present, Ian McKellen as Jacob Marley, and Rupert Grint as Bob Cratchit. Daisy Ridley, Sam Claflin, Charlie Murphy, Arthur Conti and Ellie Bamber complete the group. West is directing the film from a script by Nathaniel Halpern adapted from Charles Dickens’ classic 1843 novel.
This project will hit theaters on November 13 – along with the upcoming Lionsgate film Sharp today– marks Depp’s first foray into Hollywood studios since 2018 Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. The actor has been ruled out of the next film in the Warner Bros. franchise. After negative headlines amid his split from Amber Heard that led to a controversial lawsuit.
Depp recently turned his attention to non-American films and appeared in a period piece Jean de Barry. At the film’s premiere at Cannes in 2023, he was asked about Hollywood’s perception of him and replied: “I don’t feel interrupted, because I don’t think about Hollywood. I don’t feel any more need for Hollywood — I don’t know about you.”
CinemaCon is the annual event for Hollywood exhibitors and studios that takes place this year from April 13-16. It’s the official convention of Cinema United.
