Johnny Depp’s crazy transformation into Scrooge told on video

Makeup, prosthetics and extended chin: Johnny Depp is unrecognizable in Ti West’s gothic rereading of Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol. A new video reveals behind the scenes of his metamorphosis.

From Edward Scissorhands to Jack Sparrow, he has always taken on iconic looks.

Johnny Depp takes physical transformation even further in Scrooge. The actor appears almost unrecognizable in the guise of Ebenezer Scrooge, the old miser imagined by Charles Dickens in his famous Christmas Carolpublished in 1843.

Worn black coat, old hat, scarred face and sullen expressions: Johnny Depp underwent extensive makeup and prosthetics work to embody the character. A metamorphosis in which he actively participated, as Barrie Gower, the film’s prosthetic effects specialist, explains in this new behind-the-scenes video of the production, posted online by Paramount (see below):

“Johnny really enjoys the makeup process. He suggests things, like adding moles. He also wanted his chin to be a little longer. Anything we can add to the character interests him.“

The actor’s investment also impressed his partners. Tramell Tillman, who shares the poster with him, says he had difficulty recognizing him during their first meeting after his transformation: “To be honest, the first time I saw him with his full makeup on, I didn’t recognize him. Johnny was really excited to play Scrooge in his own way.“

For Johnny Depp, Scrooge above all marks an important return to a major Hollywood production. The actor had not headlined a film produced by a major American studio since Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwaldreleased in 2018. He was then excluded from the third part, Dumbledore’s Secretsreleased in 2022, before filming mainly outside the major Hollywood studios.

He will return to Hollywood a second time with Day Drinkera Lionsgate thriller in which he will notably star alongside Madelyn Cline and Penélope Cruz, expected in March 2027.

Waiting for, Scrooge also features Rupert Grint, Andrea Riseborough, Sam Claflin, Daisy Ridley, Arthur Conti, Ellie Bamber, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Charlie Murphy, Tramell Tillman and Ian McKellen.

Scrooge will be released in France in cinemas on November 11, 2026.