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Johnny Depp’s Hollywood Comeback Gets a Christmas Miracle

“Ebenezer” tops the box office this weekend.

#1

Johnny Depp’s return to the screen in Ebenezer netted Paramount studios $19 million in domestic sales on its opening weekend. The Charles Dickens adaptation was Depp’s first major studio role since 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. In 2020, Depp’s career took a major hit after he was accused of domestic abuse by his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard. The former couple leveled allegations of defamation against each other in two high-profile trials in 2022. “This is a solid opening for a Christmas-themed movie,” says David A. Gross, who publishes the box office newsletter FranchiseRe. “Johnny Depp remains a major celebrity around the world, and director Ti West brings some edge.” Depp’s next major film will be Lionsgate’s 2027 thriller Day Drinker, opposite Penélope Cruz. “With the No. 1 film in the marketplace, and his image and likeness splashed all over the marketing material, Johnny Depp’s Hollywood exile is effectively over,” said Jeff Bock, an analyst with Exhibitor Relations.

Christopher Buchanan

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