EBENEZER: A CHRISTMAS CAROL – JOHNNY DEPP BRINGS SCROOGE TO THE BIG SCREEN, WHILE BRANDS DRAW ON HIS STORY IN THEIR ADVERTISING

Starring Johnny Depp, Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol arrives in Czech cinemas on 12 November. But this latest adaptation of Dickens’s classic is attracting more than the usual film publicity. Brands including Casper, Last Crumb and Aunt Bessie’s have launched marketing tie-ins inspired by the famous miser. Meanwhile, A Christmas Carol is also finding its way into this year’s television campaigns for Walmart and Argos. Scrooge has a long history in advertising, demonstrating how Dickens’s tale continues to appeal to brands across a remarkably wide range of industries.

Charles Dickens first published A Christmas Carol in 1843. The story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a miserly businessman visited in a single night by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come, has since inspired countless stage, television and film adaptations. The latest, however, comes from a director few would associate with a traditional Christmas tale.

Ti West, best known for his horror trilogy X, Pearl and MaXXXine, has chosen to emphasise the supernatural and unsettling side of the story. In his version, the ghosts are not merely guides on Scrooge’s journey towards moral redemption: they are intended to be genuinely terrifying. The film promises a Gothic fantasy with a strong horror streak, far removed from the usual festive fare. Johnny Depp takes the lead role, marking his return to a major Hollywood studio production after eight years. Rupert Grint, best known as Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter films, plays Scrooge’s employee Bob Cratchit. The cast also includes Ian McKellen, Daisy Ridley, Andrea Riseborough, Sam Claflin and Tramell Tillman.

Paramount’s approach to promoting the film is also noteworthy. As director Ti West himself points out, Depp’s portrayal of Scrooge carries echoes of some of his most iconic earlier roles, including Jack Sparrow, Willy Wonka and Edward Scissorhands. Depp also made a surprise appearance in full Scrooge costume at San Diego Comic-Con in July. Visitors could view a Victorian-style recreation of Scrooge and Marley’s shop from the outside, while actors in period costume brought the surrounding area to life. The highlight was an unexpected appearance by Depp himself in character as Scrooge. The film’s world thus extended beyond the screen, offering fans a memorable experience, footage of which subsequently spread across social media.

Brand partnerships: from mattresses and cookies to Christmas dinner

One of the film’s most intriguing marketing partners is the American mattress brand Casper. Its collaboration with Paramount Pictures starts with a simple question: what if Ebenezer Scrooge was so bad-tempered simply because he had not had a good night’s sleep? That is the premise behind the The More You Snooze, the Less You Scrooge campaign, which contrasts Scrooge’s legendary grumpiness with the very thing Casper promises its customers: a good night’s sleep.

Paramount has also teamed up with American luxury cookie brand Last Crumb, which has released two limited-edition products inspired by the film. The first, Bah Crumbug, is a play on Scrooge’s famous exclamation, ‘Bah, humbug!’ The second, Ghost of Chocolate Past, is a chocolate cookie with a gooey filling, its name riffing on the Ghost of Christmas Past. The products went on sale in late October 2026, shortly before the film’s release. The special cookies first appeared at Last Crumb’s physical shop in New York and are gradually being added to the brand’s online range. The partnership was also accompanied by a short video in which Depp, in character as Scrooge, tosses cookies about during a promotional event in New York, displaying his trademark ill temper:



Video: Johnny Depp brings the humbug to NYC

British food brand Aunt Bessie’s, best known for its frozen side dishes, opted for a more traditional form of cross-promotion. Selected product packs advertise the film Ebenezer and invite shoppers to enter a competition offering 205 Christmas prizes, including a festive feast for six, three private screenings of the film, three-month Paramount+ subscriptions and film merchandise. The promotion runs from 1 October to 31 December 2026, linking pre-Christmas shopping with the film’s November premiere and subsequent cinema run. Film imagery on the packaging and the prize draw are designed to catch shoppers’ attention at the point of sale. Unlike Casper’s campaign, this is primarily a conventional retail promotion. In both cases, however, the film provides a way to attract customers and make the brands’ Christmas offerings more appealing.

Television advertising: Scrooge sells presents and electronics this Christmas

While these partnerships directly promote the new film, the 2026 Christmas advertising season reveals a much wider appetite for Dickens’s story. This year, Scrooge and his encounters with the Christmas ghosts also feature in campaigns by two major retailers, both of which have drawn on Dickens’s enduring tale independently of the new film.

On 26 October, US retailer Walmart unveiled its Christmas campaign, ‘A Who Knew Carol’, which draws on the 1992 film The Muppet Christmas Carol. It stars Walton Goggins, known for series including Fallout and The White Lotus, as Scrooge, alongside Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo and other much-loved Muppet characters.



Video: Walmart Presents: A Who Knew Carol

Developed in partnership with Disney and The Muppets Studio, the campaign’s main advert recalls the musical sequences of the original Muppet adaptation. Elsewhere in the campaign, Dickens’s ghosts become guides to Christmas shopping, introducing viewers to gift ideas, Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions, and express delivery options. The campaign spans television, streaming platforms, online video, social media and other advertising channels.

British retailer Argos has also turned to A Christmas Carol this year. Its advert, ‘Tales of Argos Past’, launched on 1 November and features actor and comedian Richard Ayoade. His character is stuck in the past, still convinced that Argos mainly sells toys. The brand’s mascots Connie and Trev set out to put him right by taking on the roles of the Christmas ghosts. They guide him through the world of Argos’s old printed catalogues before introducing him to its current range of electronics, homeware and other gifts.



Video: Argos – Tales of Argos Past

The advert was created by agency T&P and directed by Declan Lowney. As well as appearing on television, the campaign is running in cinemas, on streaming platforms, on social media and through outdoor advertising.

Earlier adverts inspired by A Christmas Carol

Dickens’s tale was appearing in adverts long before the latest screen adaptation. Over the years, the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge has been recast as a shopper longing for the latest gadgets, a would-be smartphone owner and even an enthusiastic fitness fan. Advertisers have often played on the familiar arc of his transformation from an unpleasant loner into a generous man who finally discovers the meaning of Christmas.

As early as 2010, Sony launched a major British Christmas campaign inspired by A Christmas Carol. It cast celebrated actor Derek Jacobi as Ebenezer Scrooge. In the two-minute television advert, a Sony Christmas offer promising cashback equivalent to the VAT on electronics purchases persuades Scrooge to overcome his miserliness and buy presents for his relatives. The music featured internationally renowned pianist Lang Lang, accompanied by an orchestra.



Video: Sony – A Sony Christmas Carol (2010), featuring Derek Jacobi

One of the more unusual advertising adaptations of Dickens’s novella came from Adidas in 2012. In the special animated advert ‘The Cautionary Tale of Ebenezer Snoop’, American rapper Snoop Dogg, then also known as Snoop Lion, played a modern-day Scrooge. Over the course of Christmas night, he is visited by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come. The Ghost of Christmas Past was played by tennis player Stan Smith; the Ghost of Christmas Present by footballer David Beckham; and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come by basketball player Derrick Rose and singer Rita Ora.



Video: The Cautionary Tale of Ebenezer Snoop

In 2014, Canadian retailer The Source brought Dickens’s story into the world of modern electronics with a television advert. Scrooge spots a boy wearing fashionable Beats headphones and immediately wants a pair himself. He is then visited by a glowing holographic ghost who also happens to work for The Source and brings him headphones, a tablet and a smartphone. Created by agency Juniper Park, the advert plays on the phrase Ghost of Christmas Presents: a pun on the original Ghost of Christmas Present that turns the spirit into a bearer of Christmas gifts. The campaign ran on Canadian television, in cinemas and online, and tied in with the brand’s I Want That slogan.



Video: The Source – Scrooge Ghost

US telecommunications company Xfinity also featured Ebenezer Scrooge in 2014 in an advert for its X1 Triple Play package, which combined television, internet and telephone services. Dickens’s famous miser was played by actor David A. Kimball. But this was not Xfinity’s only advert inspired by A Christmas Carol. A second spot, entitled ‘A WiFi Christmas Carol’, featured actors Dayo Ade and Kaleo Elam.



Video: Comcast XFINITY – Mr. Scrooge in Christmas Present

An inventive take on A Christmas Carol also came from British supermarket chain Aldi in 2021. The star of its animated Christmas advert, ‘A Christmas Carrot’, was Ebanana Scrooge, a grumpy banana with no love for the festive season. Hoping to change his mind was the ghost of Kevin the Carrot, Aldi’s popular advertising mascot. The advert also featured Marcus Radishford, a vegetable character voiced by footballer Marcus Rashford. Created by agency McCann UK, it first aired on ITV on 11 November 2021.



Video: Aldi – The Tale of Ebanana Scrooge

Fitness brand Peloton brought a modern Scrooge to television screens in 2021, played by Brett Gelman, known for his role in Stranger Things. At first, his character rejects the Christmas spirit and is irritated by his neighbours singing carols. Everything changes when he receives a Peloton exercise bike and begins working out regularly. The surly loner gradually becomes a cheerful, energetic man who enjoys both exercise and the company of others. Created by agency adam&eveDDB, the advert features music by Danny Elfman from the animated film The Nightmare Before Christmas, based on a story by Tim Burton. The campaign thus evokes another well-known Christmas film alongside Dickens’s classic.



Video: Peloton – When Your Workout is a Joy, It's a Joy to Work Out

The following year, US mobile operator Verizon launched a Christmas advertising campaign starring Paul Giamatti as Ebenezer Scrooge. In the advert, Scrooge is furious about poor mobile reception. He then meets actress and comedian Cecily Strong, who introduces him to Verizon’s festive offers on smartphones and other electronic devices. At first, it seems the curmudgeonly miser has finally discovered the joy of giving, but it soon becomes clear that he would rather keep all the presents for himself. The 30-second spot was directed by Bryan Buckley, with McCann as the creative agency. It formed part of a wider seasonal campaign for the operator.



Video: Verizon – Paul Giamatti as a Scrooge

In 2025, US company Inspire Medical Systems, which offers an implantable treatment for sleep apnoea, also revisited the original motif of the three Christmas ghosts. In its television advert, three ghosts attempt to frighten a sleeping man. But he wakes up completely refreshed and explains that his previous sleep problems were not caused by ghosts at all, but by sleep apnoea. Thanks to treatment with an Inspire implant, he now sleeps so well that he has even become more generous, leaving a substantial tip at dinner. The disappointed spirits eventually realise that their services are no longer required. The advert thus draws on Dickens’s tale to promote Inspire’s implantable system for treating obstructive sleep apnoea in an unexpected way.



Video: Inspire Medical Systems – Scrooge

A Christmas Carol: an advertising story that never grows old

The new Ebenezer is a reminder that a famous literary work can inspire far more than yet another film adaptation. It is also a seemingly inexhaustible source of marketing ideas that brands can use to promote their products and services. And therein lies a considerable irony. Ebenezer Scrooge loathes Christmas, detests giving presents and would most likely greet the very thought of spending money with his trademark cry of ‘Bah, humbug!’ Yet he has become one of the most dependable characters in Christmas advertising.

Where advertising often turns Scrooge and his ghosts into comic characters, the latest film heads in the opposite direction. Director Ti West has set out to restore the story’s frightening edge. As he has explained, he wanted to make a version in which the ghosts are genuinely terrifying. The world of advertising, however, plays by rather different rules: there, even a visit from a ghost can end in a pleasant surprise – and sometimes a bargain.

Whether or not Johnny Depp’s Scrooge sees the error of his ways in the new film, one thing is certain: his place in advertising is secure. Dickens’s tale has survived for almost two centuries and still finds ways to connect with new generations of audiences and advertising creatives.