Johnny Depp is officially returning to major Hollywood studio films with a dark new take on a Christmas classic.

The 62-year-old actor will star as Ebenezer Scrooge in Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol, a reimagining of Charles Dickens’ 1843 novella from Paramount Pictures.

Billed as a “thrilling ghost story set in Dickens’ London,” the film follows a man forced to confront his past, present, and future to earn a second chance.

Horror filmmaker Ti West, known for X, Pearl and MaXXXine, will direct from a screenplay by Nathaniel Halpern (Tales from the Loop). Joining Depp in the cast is To Leslie Oscar nominee Andrea Riseborough.

The film is slated for release on November 13, 2026, per Deadline.

Ebenezer marks Depp’s first major Hollywood studio project since 2019’s Waiting for the Barbarians and 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

In recent years, Depp has focused on European cinema, starring in the French biopic Jeanne du Barry and directing Modì: Three Days on the Wing of Madness, which hits US theaters November 7. He also stars opposite Penélope Cruz in the upcoming thriller Day Drinker.

Meanwhile, another dark A Christmas Carol adaptation is also in the works from Nosferatu director Robert Eggers and star Willem Dafoe.

Depp largely stepped back from Hollywood after his high-profile 2022 defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard.

Critics panned Jennifer’s Body when it was released in 2009. But over the years, the movie has become a cult classic.

Adam Brody, who plays Nikolai Wolf, sheds light on the movie on his appearance on Hot Ones. “I think it was ahead of its time. I think it was; it might have not mattered, but I think it was positioned wrong at the time.”

He continues, “I think it was marketed like 180 degrees the wrong way, but regardless, that might not have made much difference.” 

This thing that came back from the dead that people enjoyed, it’s almost more satisfying than if it just comes out of the gate, you know, successful,” the star adds.

“I mean, the truth of the matter is, I’m not in it all that much, so, like, it doesn’t concern me as much as other people. But I think it’s great, and I was a big fan then, and I’m happy other people are now,” Adam concludes.

In addition to him, Jennifer’s Body also stars Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, and Chris Pratt.