After years spent as a pariah, Johnny Depp has been edging his way back into Hollywood’s good graces. His comeback got the full San Diego Comic-Con treatment last night, where he made a surprise appearance in Hall H to debut the trailer for his biggest film in years. Ebenezer is director Ti West’s reimagining of A Christmas Carol, placing Depp front and center as the iconic holiday villain, Ebenezer Scrooge.
It’s kind of wild to see Depp back in Hall H, years after he showed up in full heel mode for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. That film’s failure, and the end of that franchise, also marked a turning point for Depp’s career where he was no longer a box office draw, but a deadweight.
That Paramount put the spotlight on Depp for Ebenezer shows its faith in the film and in West to create what could be a powerhouse film for the Christmas season. As the tagline, “The name you know, the story you don’t” suggests, screenwriter Nathaniel Halpern is going to be introducing some new material to the infamous miser’s tale.
Joining Depp in the cast are Rupert Grint, Andrea Riseborough, Sam Claflin, Daisy Ridley, Arthur Conti, Ellie Bamber, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Charlie Murphy, Tramell Tillman, and Ian McKellen.
Ebenezer opens in theaters on November 13th.
