A New Look at Sir Ian McKellen’s Jacob Marley in Ebenezer Arrives From the Counting House
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Phil Roberts 
Johnny Depp’s Ebenezer Scrooge brings serious star power, but our first look at Sir Ian McKellen as Jacob Marley takes it to another level!
It’s been a minute since we heard fresh details about Paramount’s new take on the legend of Ebenezer Scrooge. After its big reveal at SDCC, Johnny Depp’s big-screen comeback has been quietly sledding toward its November release date. But with August now behind us and the festive season creeping ever closer, the studio has unwrapped a fresh look at the movie to get us firmly into the Christmas spirit.
Paramount, via the great team at Entertainment Weekly, has turned the spotlight on the impressive ensemble Ti West has assembled to bring his new Christmas classic to life. And there’s no better place to start than with the legendary Sir Ian McKellen as Jacob Marley. The first-look image offers a suitably atmospheric glimpse of McKellen’s Marley before the chains and ghostly apparitions come into play. Sitting behind his counting desk and illuminated by the flickering glow of a solitary candle, Marley looks every inch the cold and calculating businessman. It’s a wonderfully atmospheric introduction to a character whose arrival will soon plunge Scrooge into the supernatural nightmare that will change his life forever. Take a look at the image below.
THE CAST
Alongside McKellen’s Jacob Marley, the new images offer fresh glimpses of Rupert Grint and Tramell Tillman, with Tillman taking on the pivotal role of the Ghost of Christmas Present. From the moment West announced his plans for the movie, he has made it clear that he wants to embrace the darker, more supernatural side of Dickens’ story, and these new images certainly suggest that Scrooge’s spectral visitors won’t be the usual friendly faces.
So, has West conjured up a truly chilling trio of ghosts for his bold new spin on Dickens’ beloved Christmas classic? Take a look at the new images below and decide for yourself!
“I’ve always thought no one’s really made the movie version where the ghosts are a little bit spooky,” he told EW. “I liked it more as a ghost story than as a Christmas story because when I was young, I saw the George C. Scott TV movie and Marley really freaked me out,” he says. “It was one of the earlier horror-adjacent things I had seen.” He said.
As for Grint, the legendary Harry Potter star has signed on to become Scrooge’s overworked and underpaid employee, Bob Cratchit, a character West calls the emotional core of the movie. “He’s a core emotion in the movie, for sure,” West says. “I think he brings a certain sympathy that you have for him that maybe you don’t have in some of the other versions, because I think you do get a sense of what it’s like to have this job where he’s kind of the whipping boy of the job for a long time.” Get your first look at Grint below.
RELEASE
Personally, I cannot wait to see Johnny Depp’s take on Ebenezer Scrooge. The actor has brought some of Hollywood’s most memorable characters to life over the years, and his interpretation of Dickens’ infamous miser could be something truly special. Add in a stellar ensemble cast, ambitious production values, and Ti West’s distinctive vision, and Ebenezer looks set to deliver a fresh and wonderfully bold spin on one of the most beloved Christmas stories of all time.
West has previously described the film as a traditional take on the property, while promising to give the story enough breathing room to feel fresh and develop its own identity. And as a massive fan of Dickens’ original novel, the director clearly has no intention of straying too far from the source material. That sounds like the perfect balance to me: a faithful adaptation that respects what makes the story so timeless while still bringing something new to the table. If these first-look images are anything to go by, West may have conjured up something truly special—and there’s more than enough here to get us feeling festive!
Bah Humbug!
Ebenezer, starring the unconquerable Johnny Depp, brings the Christmas magic to cinemas in November.
Meet Phil Roberts! He’s the dedicated owner, daily content manager, and editor-in-chief of The Future of the Force. Phil is a budding novelist who turned his passion toward writing about the franchises he loves back in 2016. He’s a huge fan of all things Star Wars, Batman, DC, Marvel, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, Ghostbusters, King Kong, and the Ray Harryhausen movies. Phil is a BFI-accredited journalist and a distinguished member of the Film Critics Association UK.
If he’s not catching a movie at the cinema, you can bet he’s streaming something just as awesome!
