Johnny Depp's first studio film in eight years opens today, testing his comeback

Johnny Depp's first wide theatrical release for a major studio in nearly eight years, "Ebenezer," opens in theaters across the United States on Nov. 13, becoming the clearest test yet of whether mainstream audiences will pay to see him carry a studio film again. The gothic reimagining of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," directed by Ti West and distributed by Paramount Pictures, casts Depp as Ebenezer Scrooge opposite Rupert Grint, Ian McKellen, Andrea Riseborough, Sam Claflin and Tramell Tillman, according to the studio's own production feature published two days before release. The Motion Picture Association rated the film PG-13 for "frightening material".

Paramount built "Ebenezer" on a budget of roughly $38 million to $40 million and reportedly spent close to $50 million marketing it, according to Variety, which reported that Depp was paid about $5 million up front, a fraction of his pre-2020 studio paydays, with bonuses tied to the film's box-office performance. That structure ties a meaningful share of his own upside to how the film actually performs rather than guaranteeing him a large fee regardless of outcome. Pre-release tracking cited by trade outlets put the domestic opening in a wide range, from roughly $17 million to $35 million, with Variety separately citing estimates of about $20 million domestically and another $20 million from 63 international markets. The rollout is staggered: the film opened Nov. 11 in France and South Korea, Nov. 12 in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, New Zealand, Brazil and Denmark, and Nov. 13 in the United States, with further territories to follow through the month. Paramount is also running a charitable tie-in with the hunger-relief organization No Kid Hungry, donating $1 per ticket sold at Regal theaters through opening day, up to $50,000.

Why Paramount chose a horror auteur

The choice of director is itself part of the pitch. West built his reputation in low-budget, R-rated horror, including "The House of the Devil," "The Innkeepers" and "The Sacrament," before earning wider acclaim for the "X" trilogy, "X," "Pearl" and "MaXXXine," made for A24 and strongly reviewed, with "X" and "Pearl" each sitting in the low-to-mid 90s percent range on review aggregators. The Sitges Film Festival named him best director in 2022. "Ebenezer" marks a significant departure for him in two ways: it is his first film for a major studio rather than an independent label, and it is rated PG-13 rather than R, aimed at a broad holiday audience rather than horror devotees. Paramount's wager is that West's command of mood and dread can make a story first published in 1843 feel genuinely unsettling again without alienating families looking for seasonal counter-programming.

From a defamation verdict to European exile and back

The release caps a long rebuilding period for Depp, who was dropped from the "Fantastic Beasts" franchise in 2020 after losing a UK libel case and was largely shut out of major U.S. studio films afterward. In 2022, a Fairfax County, Virginia jury sided with Depp on his central defamation claims against his ex-wife, Amber Heard, awarding him damages while also finding against him on one of Heard's countersuit claims. In the years since, Depp worked almost entirely outside the Hollywood studio system. He starred as Louis XV opposite director Maïwenn in "Jeanne du Barry," which opened the 76th Cannes Film Festival in May 2023 and earned him a standing ovation from the Cannes audience. He also returned to directing for the first time in 27 years with "Modi, Three Days on the Wing of Madness," a biopic of the painter Amedeo Modigliani starring Al Pacino and Riccardo Scamarcio, which premiered at the San Sebastián International Film Festival in September 2024 ahead of a limited North American release. Throughout this period he also continued as the face of Dior's Sauvage fragrance, a deal Variety reports is worth roughly $20 million. At a London premiere this month, Depp told reporters he owes a debt to fans who stood by him "through thick and thin," according to the Irish News. Paramount first showed footage from "Ebenezer" publicly at CinemaCon in April, where Depp introduced the reel in person; the studio's own recap of that event and independent coverage both describe a mixed room, with applause alongside audible skepticism.

A newly merged Paramount is watching closely

The film arrives as its distributor is under new financial pressure. Paramount Skydance completed its roughly $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery on Oct. 6, forming a combined company that took on billions of dollars in new debt, including more than $4 billion in secured notes and an $8.5 billion term loan, to help finance the deal, according to the company's own closing announcement, which quotes chairman and chief executive David Ellison calling it "a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry." As part of a settlement that cleared antitrust objections to the merger, the combined company separately committed to releasing at least 30 theatrical films a year for its first two years, making individual box-office outcomes like "Ebenezer" more closely watched by investors than they might otherwise be.

For theater owners, reactions to Depp's drawing power are split. Regal chief executive Eduardo Acuna told Variety the Scrooge role "feels like the character was written for Johnny Depp," while Classic Cinemas chief executive Chris Johnson was more cautious, noting the Dickens story "has been told a number of times" and that its success will hinge on quality rather than star power alone. Market-research veteran Kevin Goetz, founder of the audience-testing firm Screen Engine/ASI, argued moviegoers have moved past the controversy:

"Audiences don't care. He's still one of the biggest movie stars on the planet. He ain't America's dad. We don't want him to be that."

Independent exhibitor Mark O'Meara, who runs University Mall and Cinema Arts Theatres in Fairfax, Virginia, told Variety the response among his regular customers is split roughly down the middle: "Some people can't wait. They love Johnny Depp. And others are just like, 'Meh.'"

What comes next

The real test arrives over the weekend, when actual box-office returns replace tracking estimates. "Ebenezer" opens into a relatively open pre-Thanksgiving corridor, ahead of Warner Bros.' "The Cat in the Hat" wide expansion and the next "Hunger Games" prequel, both scheduled for Nov. 20. How the film performs could also shape decisions well beyond this single release. At Disney's D23 fan expo in August, longtime "Pirates of the Caribbean" producer Jerry Bruckheimer confirmed the studio is in talks to bring Depp back as Captain Jack Sparrow, telling the crowd, "We're talking to Johnny. We're working on a screenplay. Hopefully we can get this done," though no script or deal has been finalized. Depp's next confirmed role is already locked in: Lionsgate's "Day Drinker," a thriller directed by Marc Webb co-starring Penélope Cruz and Madelyn Cline, is scheduled for release on March 26, 2027. It will mark the fourth on-screen pairing of Depp and Cruz, after "Blow," "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" and "Murder on the Orient Express."