Johnny Depp accepted a sharply reduced upfront salary of $5 million to star in the upcoming holiday film “Ebenezer,” marking his first major Hollywood studio production in eight years, Variety reported Tuesday.
The 63-year-old actor takes on the title role of Ebenezer Scrooge in Paramount Pictures’ new adaptation of the Charles Dickens novella “A Christmas Carol.” The dark fantasy comedy, directed by Ti West, is scheduled to arrive in theaters Friday, Nov. 13. While Depp’s base salary represents a significant drop from his previous paydays, his contract includes potential bonuses tied to how well the film performs at the box office, according to Variety.
A sharp contrast with past studio earnings
The $5 million compensation reflects a major shift from Depp’s earnings during his peak commercial years. For his last studio appearance in 2018’s “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald,” Warner Bros. paid Depp $16 million despite him filming only a single scene, Page Six reported. Warner Bros. severed ties with the actor in 2020 after he lost a libel lawsuit in the United Kingdom against the publisher of The Sun, which had labeled him a “wife beater.”
At the height of his box-office draw, Depp commanded some of the highest salaries in the film industry. He collected an estimated $90 million through backend profits on 2017’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” and received $50 million for a brief appearance as the Mad Hatter in 2010’s “Alice in Wonderland,” according to Page Six. During Depp’s 2022 Virginia defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, his agent testified that Depp had previously been positioned to earn $22.5 million for a sixth “Pirates” installment before the studio moved in another direction.
Depp later prevailed in the Virginia defamation suit, where a jury awarded him more than $10 million in damages while granting Heard $2 million on one counterclaim.
Box office outlook and upcoming slate
Paramount kept production costs relatively tight for “Ebenezer,” spending roughly $38 million to produce the project alongside an estimated $50 million marketing budget, Variety reported. Box-office tracking estimates the film will earn about $20 million domestically over its opening weekend, with another $20 million expected across 63 international markets.
During his absence from major American studio releases, Depp worked on international and independent cinema. He starred in the French historical drama “Jeanne du Barry,” which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2023, and directed the 2024 biographical drama “Modì, Three Days on the Wing of Madness.” Asked by The Associated Press about returning to Hollywood, Depp downplayed the distinction, saying, “What’s the difference between the Hollywood film and a French film? I mean the difference is this, there was a bit of a vacation, which was fine.”
Industry research suggests audiences remain receptive to the star. An April survey by the National Research Group placed Depp among the top 10 actors who make moviegoers interested in visiting a theater, ranking alongside figures such as Tom Hanks and Margot Robbie. Beyond “Ebenezer,” which co-stars Rupert Grint, Daisy Ridley and Ian McKellen, Depp has signed on to headline Lionsgate’s 2027 action thriller “Day Drinker” alongside Penélope Cruz.
