Johnny Depp's 'Ebenezer' forecast to open at about $20M-$25M
Paramount's 'Ebenezer,' a Ti West-directed take on A Christmas Carol starring Johnny Depp in his first major studio film since 2018, opens Friday with forecasts of about $20 million to $25 million in the U.S. and Canada, per TheWrap and Boxoffice Pro; these are projections, not ticket sales.
AI-assisted · US Brief desk · Sources listed below
What happened
What's opening: 'Ebenezer,' Paramount's adaptation of A Christmas Carol, opens Friday in more than 3,500 theaters in the U.S. and Canada, with Johnny Depp as Ebenezer Scrooge and Sam Claflin as Fred. TheWrap says it is projected to open around $20 million at home with a similar overseas start. Boxoffice Pro forecasts $20 million to $25 million domestically and about $40 million worldwide. These are projections; no tickets have been counted.
The money: The film has a reported net budget of $38 million and a reported $50 million marketing budget, TheWrap said, with Depp taking a smaller salary than in his prime. At that cost, TheWrap said, a modest opening could still be a modest success if word of mouth carries it into December.
The rest of the forecast: GKIDS' 'Godzilla Minus Zero,' which opened to $30.6 million last weekend, is projected at $12 million to $17 million in its second weekend. Warner Bros.' 'The Cat in the Hat' is projected at $10 million to $15 million. Boxoffice Pro has Amazon MGM's 'How to Rob a Bank' and Sony's 'Ghost Soldier' at $6 million to $10 million each; TheWrap says 'How to Rob a Bank' is tracking in the low teens.
Why it matters
It is Depp's first major studio film since 2018's Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, and Boxoffice Pro called it "a major test of the public's appetite for the actor." Director Ti West is best known for the horror films X and Pearl, and early reactions from influencers say it feels like a horror movie, Boxoffice Pro reported. Boxoffice Pro, citing Variety, said its marketing budget is higher than its production budget.
More context
For comparison: Past versions of the story earned $60.3 million (Scrooged, 1988), $27.38 million (The Muppet Christmas Carol, 1992) and $137.85 million (Disney's A Christmas Carol, 2009) in total, per Boxoffice Pro. Those are full-run domestic totals, not openings.
What would change the story: Friday estimates, due Saturday, will show whether family audiences turned out. Sunday studio estimates come Nov. 15 and Monday actuals Nov. 16. A big over- or under-performance would shape talk about Depp's next studio roles, including any return to Pirates of the Caribbean, which Boxoffice Pro raised as a possibility.
2 listed sources
- Boxoffice Pro, Weekend Box Office Preview: Johnny Depp Attempts a Comeback with EBENEZER, Nov. 11, 2026
- TheWrap (Jeremy Fuster), Can 'Ebenezer' Resurrect Johnny Depp's Box Office Drawing Power?, Nov. 11, 2026
References listed by US Brief; a source count is not a verification score.
Editorial sourcing notes
All weekend numbers here are forecasts from Boxoffice Pro's panel and tracking cited by TheWrap; budget figures are as reported by TheWrap, not actual grosses. Friday estimates arrive Saturday, Sunday studio estimates on Nov. 15 and Monday actuals on Nov. 16. The hero photo shows Depp performing with his band Hollywood Vampires (file photo, 2018), not from the film.
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