Ebenezer 2026 Review: Dickens With the Candles Burning Low
My Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ☆ 4/5
Fog rolling over Victorian London.
A counting house colder than the street outside.
Chains rattling in the dark.
And a miser who is about to have the longest night of his life.
Welcome to our Ebenezer 2026 Review. A Christmas Carol has been told so many times that you might think there is nothing left to say. Director Ti West clearly disagreed. His version takes the old story back to its roots as a ghost story, and it is darker than any Scrooge tale I have seen in years.
Like every Kilroy review, this Ebenezer 2026 Review is spoiler free. I will stick to the premise you already know from Dickens and the trailer. How this version plays out, and what surprises it holds, stays in the shadows for you to discover.
Ebenezer 2026 Review: A Christmas Carol With the Lights Turned Down
Let me be upfront. This movie has a very dark tone. If you are expecting the Muppets, singing Cratchits, and a jolly goose dinner, you are in for a surprise.
Ebenezer plays like a gothic ghost story first and a holiday movie second. The streets are gloomy. The candlelight flickers. The spirits are unsettling. There are real chills along the way.
But here is the thing. Even with all that darkness, it is still an enjoyable movie. There is wit, there is heart, and there are performances worth the price of a ticket. Ian McKellen, in particular, is wonderful.
West has called the film a hard PG movie. It is the kind of picture he loved as a kid, with a few scares and moments that push a little further than you expect. That is a perfect description of what ends up on screen.
The Story Setup
You know the basics. Ebenezer Scrooge is a wealthy, bitter businessman in Victorian London. He despises Christmas and nearly everyone who celebrates it.
On Christmas Eve, his late business partner Jacob Marley comes calling. Marley warns him that three spirits will visit him before the night is through.
The Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come take Scrooge on a supernatural journey through his life. He is forced to face the mistakes of his past and the bleakness of his present. He also gets one last chance at redemption.
The marketing promised a name you know and a story you don’t. That is fair. The bones are pure Dickens, but this version adds new layers and new angles. I will leave those for you to find.
The Cast of Ebenezer
This is one of the most stacked casts of any Christmas movie in recent memory. Here is who shows up.
Johnny Depp plays Ebenezer Scrooge. He has played Victorian London darkness before, starring in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
Ian McKellen plays Jacob Marley. He is forever Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings.
Rupert Grint plays Bob Cratchit. He grew up on screen as Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter films.
Andrea Riseborough plays the Ghost of Christmas Past. She earned an Oscar nomination for To Leslie.
Tramell Tillman plays the Ghost of Christmas Present. He won an Emmy for his work on Severance.
Sam Claflin plays Fred, Scrooge’s nephew. Many fans know him as Finnick Odair from The Hunger Games series.
Daisy Ridley plays Clara, Fred’s wife. She is best known as Rey in the Star Wars sequel trilogy.
Arthur Conti plays young Ebenezer Scrooge. He appeared in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
Ellie Bamber plays Isabel Fezziwig. She appeared in Nocturnal Animals.
Charlie Murphy also appears. She is known for Happy Valley and Peaky Blinders.
Henry Lloyd-Hughes also appears. Comedy fans know him from The Inbetweeners.
Ian McKellen as Jacob Marley
Let me say it plainly. Ian McKellen is wonderful in this movie.
Marley is usually a quick, spooky cameo. He rattles his chains, delivers his warning, and fades away. This version gives him more room to breathe, and McKellen makes every minute count.
He brings sly humor and real menace to the role. One moment he is trading sharp words with Scrooge. The next, he is a frightening reminder of where greed leads a man. Few actors can switch gears that smoothly.
McKellen has spent a lifetime on stage and screen. He is a multiple Olivier Award winner and a two time Oscar nominee. You can feel all that experience in his performance. Every line lands. Every pause has weight.
Behind the scenes, McKellen spoke warmly about working with Depp. He said he fell in love with him on set and praised his form during filming. That chemistry shows up on screen. Their scenes together are some of the best in the movie.
If you see Ebenezer for only one reason, make it McKellen.
Johnny Depp’s Scrooge
Johnny Depp is a bold choice for Scrooge, and Ti West knew it.
Depp is younger and more American than the typical Scrooge. West has said that unconventional choice was part of the appeal. He also said he could not predict exactly what Depp would do with the role, and that excited him.
Depp gives Scrooge a wry, dry humor that keeps him from becoming a cartoon villain. You do not have to agree with Scrooge to understand where he is coming from. That makes his journey more interesting.
This is also Depp’s first lead role in a major studio film since 2018. Love him or not, he commits completely. His Scrooge is cold, prickly, and strangely fascinating to watch.
Depp has always been drawn to oddballs with a human heart underneath. Edward Scissorhands. Willy Wonka. Sweeney Todd. His Scrooge fits right into that gallery.
Ti West Goes Gothic
Ti West made his name in horror. He directed the X trilogy, which includes X, Pearl, and MaXXXine. Ebenezer is his first major studio movie.
West wanted this film to feel like the classic British horror films of the mid twentieth century. He especially loved Hammer’s Victorian chillers. You can see that influence everywhere, from the bold colors to the old fashioned opening credits.
He also drew inspiration from the 1984 George C. Scott version of A Christmas Carol. That film’s Marley scared him as a kid, and it shaped his idea of what this story could be.
The result is a beautiful movie to look at. Cinematographer Checco Varese gives Victorian London a rich, moody glow. The candlelit rooms and foggy streets look like paintings come to life.
For horror fans, there is even a playful nod to A Nightmare on Elm Street, the 1984 film that gave Depp his first big screen role. West says the homage was already in the script before Depp signed on. Depp asked to keep it.
A Darker, Grayer Dickens
West believes the core of Dickens’ story is rock solid. That strong foundation, he says, leaves room for new interpretations.
His version adds context and makes the characters more morally complicated. Scrooge is still a bad man. But not everyone around him is a saint. The film includes swindlers and charity workers with selfish motives of their own.
West also tells the story from a more personal angle. The audience stays closer to Scrooge’s point of view. You see his world the way he sees it, which makes his transformation feel more earned.
Screenwriter Nathaniel Halpern brings his own dark sensibility to the script. He has written for the series Legion and Tales From the Loop, both known for their strange and moody storytelling.
This grayer approach is part of why the movie feels so dark. It is not just about spooky ghosts. It is about a world where kindness is rare and redemption is hard won.
Behind the Scenes
Paramount announced the project in October 2025. Filming began in January 2026 in Dublin and London. Emma Watts produced the film.
The movie was originally announced as Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol. It reached theaters simply as Ebenezer on November 13, 2026.
It runs about 116 minutes and is rated PG-13 for frightening material. Paramount released it exclusively in theaters, right at the start of the holiday movie season.
Here is a fun bit of trivia. Ebenezer is not the only dark Christmas Carol in the works. Director Robert Eggers has his own adaptation planned with Willem Dafoe as Scrooge. West’s version simply got to theaters first.
A Long Line of Scrooges
Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol in 1843. It has never gone out of print, and it has never stopped being adapted.
Alastair Sim gave us a classic Scrooge in 1951. George C. Scott made the character truly frightening in 1984. Michael Caine played Scrooge opposite the Muppets in 1992. Jim Carrey did a motion capture version in 2009.
There was even a 1998 Canadian TV movie also called Ebenezer. It set the story on the Western frontier, with Jack Palance as Scrooge.
Ti West’s Ebenezer joins that long line. It is closest in spirit to the George C. Scott version, but it pushes the gothic horror even further.
Here at the shop, I have sold more copies of A Christmas Carol on DVD and VHS than I can count. Every generation seems to have its own favorite Scrooge. This one may become a favorite for folks who like their Christmas with a few goosebumps.
A Christmas Carol in the Heartland
Out here in Southwest Iowa, A Christmas Carol is part of the season, just like Christmas lights on Main Street and church bells on Christmas Eve.
Just up the road, the Omaha Community Playhouse has staged A Christmas Carol every holiday season for decades. Its 50th annual production ran in 2025. Dickens’ tale is woven right into Midwest Christmas traditions.
That familiarity makes a new version a risky proposition. We all know this story by heart. Ti West takes that knowledge and plays with it. He knows you are expecting certain beats, and he twists them just enough to keep you guessing.
On a cold December night with the wind howling across the cornfields, this is a perfect movie to watch. Just leave a light on.
Where It Stumbles
A 4 out of 5 means Ebenezer is very good, but not perfect.
The very dark tone will not be for everyone. Families looking for a cozy holiday outing may find it too grim. Younger kids could be frightened by some of the ghostly material.
The runtime is a little long. At nearly two hours, a few stretches could have been trimmed.
Depp’s casting may divide audiences. His younger, wry Scrooge is a deliberate choice, and it will not match everyone’s idea of the character.
And with such a large, star studded cast, a few big names do not get as much to do as you might hope.
None of that spoils the experience. It just keeps this one a notch below a perfect score.
Is Ebenezer Worth Watching?
If you love gothic horror and classic British chillers, absolutely. This is a feast for the eyes and a great ghost story.
If you are a fan of Ian McKellen, run to the theater. He is the highlight of the film.
If you are a Johnny Depp fan, this is his biggest studio role in years. His Scrooge is odd, funny, and fascinating.
If you want a lighthearted Christmas movie for the whole family, think twice. The PG-13 rating is there for a reason. Teens and adults will get the most out of it.
And if you have seen A Christmas Carol a dozen times and think you know it all, this version may still surprise you.
The Kilroy Verdict on Ebenezer
Ebenezer is a dark, beautiful, and surprisingly fresh take on a story we all know. Ti West reminds us that Dickens wrote a ghost story first, and he leans into the chills without losing the heart.
Ian McKellen is wonderful as Jacob Marley. Johnny Depp gives Scrooge a strange new edge. The Hammer inspired look is gorgeous, and the cast is packed with talent.
The very dark tone will keep some families away. But for anyone who likes their Christmas with a little candlelit dread, this is one of the most memorable holiday films in years.
Final Thoughts 4/5
This one earns a 4 out of 5 from Kilroy. Wrapping up this Ebenezer 2026 Review, the movie had a very dark tone, but it was still enjoyable. Ian McKellen was wonderful, and Ti West gave an old favorite a haunting new life.
“Ian McKellen steals every chill in Ti West’s gorgeously dark, haunting Christmas Carol.”
ML Lamp, Kilroy Was Here Shop
Bah, humbug? Not this time. Just bring a flashlight and a friend to hold onto.
