Johnny Depp Resurfaces as Scrooge at Comic-Con, and Hollywood’s Comeback Machine Grinds Back Into Gear

Johnny Depp made a surprise appearance in full Ebenezer Scrooge costume at San Diego Comic-Con on Thursday, July 23, as part of a Paramount Pictures stunt that transformed a stretch of the Gaslamp Quarter into a faux 1880s British Christmas village. Depp stayed completely in character, mumbling in a Scrooge voice as he addressed a crowd that shouted greetings like “Good day to you, Mr. Scrooge,” to which he replied, “What’s so good about it?” He worked the crowd for nearly half an hour, including ribbing fans cosplaying his older characters like Captain Jack Sparrow and the Mad Hatter [1].

Depp then crashed Collider’s “Directors on Directing” panel inside Hall H to debut the first trailer for “Ebenezer,” Ti West’s adaptation of “A Christmas Carol,” staying in character throughout [2]. The film hits theaters this November and marks Depp’s first big-screen release since 2023’s “Jeanne du Barry,” and his first major U.S. convention-style public appearance since his 2022 defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. Depp told the crowd “it’s good to be back” during the appearance [3].

Why It Sucks:

Depp Fans

• The wait for a real comeback finally ends. Longtime fans have spent years wanting to see Depp back on the big screen in a starring role, and a half-hour of in-character improv at Comic-Con is exactly the victory-lap moment they feel he’s been denied by an industry that iced him out post-trial [1, 3].
• Nostalgia acts require novelty. Fans who grew up on Jack Sparrow and the Mad Hatter now have to settle for glimpsing those characters only through cosplay call-backs rather than new performances, a reminder that the roles that made him famous are effectively frozen in time [1].
• The marketing spectacle overshadows the film itself. A viral costume stunt is fun, but it risks making “Ebenezer” a referendum on Depp’s redemption arc rather than being judged as its own Ti West movie [2, 3].

Domestic Violence Advocates

• A major studio just handed him a splashy platform. Paramount didn’t quietly cast Depp — it built an entire immersive street activation around him at the industry’s biggest fan event, signaling the studio sees no reputational cost left to manage [1].
• “It’s good to be back” reframes the narrative. Advocates worry that celebratory language at a mass fan gathering flattens a defamation trial that included a jury finding of abuse against Depp into a simple redemption story [3].
• The optics normalize a fast rehabilitation. Fewer than four years removed from the trial, a full costumed public return at Comic-Con sets a template other studios may follow for accused figures, regardless of how the public record reads [2].

Paramount and the Film’s Marketing Team

• A mid-budget period film needs a viral hook. “Ebenezer” is an original awards-adjacent title without built-in franchise recognition, and a stunt like this is a low-cost way to manufacture the kind of organic buzz a trailer drop alone wouldn’t generate [2].
• Depp remains a calculated financial risk. Marketing has to bet that convention buzz converts to box office without reigniting backlash that could just as easily tank the film’s opening as boost it [1, 3].
• Timing the reveal at Hall H raises the stakes. Crashing a competing panel to debut the trailer was a bold, attention-grabbing move, but it also means the studio owns the story either way — good press or bad — heading into a crowded November release slate [2].

Sources & Citations:

[1] Deadline: Johnny Depp Makes Surprise Comic-Con Appearance For ‘Ebenezer’ Movie
[2] Deadline: ‘Ebenezer’ Trailer: Johnny Depp Unveils At Comic-Con As Scrooge
[3] The Hollywood Reporter: Johnny Depp Surprises Comic-Con as Ebenezer Scrooge on Streets of San Diego: “It’s Good to Be Back”