Johnny Depp Returns to Hollywood in Ti West's Horror 'Ebenezer'

Johnny Depp stars as Scrooge in "Ebenezer," Ti West's horror reimagining of "A Christmas Carol," which Paramount Pictures will release in theaters on Nov. 13. A second trailer for the film arrived this week.

The movie marks Depp's first Hollywood studio film in eight years. His last was 2018's "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald." Paramount is billing the project with a single logline: "The name you know, the story you don't."

West, the director behind the horror trilogy "X," leans into the darker passages of Charles Dickens' story. The new trailer shows Depp's holiday-hating miser haunted by frightening ghosts — and buried alive.

Who joins Depp on screen?

The ensemble cast spans several generations of British and American screen talent:

• Rupert Grint
• Andrea Riseborough
• Sam Claflin
• Daisy Ridley
• Arthur Conti
• Ellie Bamber
• Henry Lloyd-Hughes
• Charlie Murphy
• Tramell Tillman
• Ian McKellen

Why is this a comeback for Depp?

Depp has not starred in a Hollywood studio film since his highly publicized 2022 trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. Both Depp and Heard accused the other of domestic abuse and defamation during their relationship. The jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages; Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages.

After the trial's fallout, Warner Bros. dropped Depp from the third "Fantastic Beasts" film, "The Secrets of Dumbledore," which opened in 2022.

What comes next for the actor?

"Ebenezer" will not be Depp's only return to the studio system. He next stars in "Day Drinker," a Lionsgate thriller with Madelyn Cline and Penélope Cruz, set for release in March 2027.

The Nov. 13 opening will test whether a horror-tinged Dickens adaptation can anchor a major studio's holiday season — and whether audiences welcome Depp back in a leading studio role.