Johnny Depp has made a surprise appearance as Ebenezer Scrooge at San Diego Comic-Con in California.
Depp is playing the classic Charles Dickens character in his mainstream Hollywood comeback, Ebenezer.
His appearance was not announced ahead of time, and the movie has no panel at Comic-Con, but a crowd had already gathered in response to rumours that Depp would be showing up in character.
Depp was last at Comic-Con in July 2018, when he appeared as the eponymous villain in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Two years later, Warner Bros asked Depp to resign from the franchise after he lost a court case relating to his acrimonious split from ex-wife Amber Heard.
In the years since, the Pirates of the Caribbean star has largely been absent from Hollywood, although he has starred in indie and international productions.
Paramount‘s Ebenezer is a ghost story that follows Scrooge’s journey through his past, present, and future as he fights for a chance at redemption. The film also stars Andrea Riseborough as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Tramell Tillman as the Ghost of Christmas Present, Ian McKellen as Jacob Marley and Rupert Grint as Bob Cratchit.
Ebenezer is set to arrive in cinemas on 13 November.
Depp is also starring in another big studio movie, Lionsgate’s Day Drinker, which is due out in 2027.
