Johnny Depp didn’t just show up at San Diego Comic-Con: He walked in like Christmas had come four months early.
Fans were caught completely off guard when the 63-year-old actor appeared dressed as Ebenezer Scrooge to promote Ti West’s upcoming gothic reinvention. Ebenezer: A Christmas Story.
With a top hat, cane, gray facial hair and heavy prosthetic makeup, Depp was almost impossible to recognize.
The surprise appearance was not listed on the official Comic-Con schedule, which makes the reveal even sweeter for fans. Depp later joined Collider’s “Directors on Directing” panel before the film’s first trailer debuted.
Earlier in the day, crowds gathered outside the convention center as the Pirates of the Caribbean star walked into the Gaslamp Quarter’s Scrooge and Marley-themed store without even breaking character.
When a fan shouted, “Good morning, Mr. Scrooge,” Depp instantly responded with a Dickensian grumpiness.
“What’s so nice about it?” he responded.
The film, first announced in 2025, offers a darker spin on Charles Dickens’ beloved Christmas classic and follows Scrooge’s supernatural journey toward redemption.
Veteran actor Ian McKellen, who plays Jacob Marley, previously had nothing but praise for his co-star.
“He’s in great shape,” McKellen told Variety. “Effervescent, funny, irreverent, serious, all at the same time.”
He added that working with Depp “was kind of a love fest.”
“I fell in love with him,” McKellen said, calling the actor “very helpful to his fellow actors.” [There was] a wonderful feeling on set.”
Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol will hit theaters on November 13, marking Depp’s first major Hollywood studio release in several years.
