Johnny Depp Takes Swipe At Trump With Tariffs Joke During Rare Public Appearance At Comic-Con

Actor Johnny Depp appeared to mock President Donald Trump by joking about tariffs while in character to promote his upcoming film Ebenezer at San Diego Comic-Con last week.

Depp made a surprise appearance dressed as Ebenezer Scrooge, emerging from a fake storefront bearing a "Scrooge & Marley" sign. A crowd quickly gathered, with many attendees wishing him "Merry Christmas!" Depp stayed in character throughout the encounter, responding to fans as Scrooge.

He said:

“Do you have jobs? It seems as though you have so much spare time. Why are you here? I can only say you’re all very, very strange people. Humbug!”

Depp, fully embracing his role as Scrooge, yanked holiday garlands from the gates and warned:

“These are poison! Keep these away from children.”

When another performer confronted him over the stunt, he dismissively replied:

"That's on my property, which means that I own it."

He then made a pointed remark about tariffs:

"And that you’re paying tax on it being there, ’cause everybody has to pay all that stuff. Putting tariffs on the gate.”

You can watch what happened in the video below.

Depp's jab came as the Trump administration imposed new tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on imports from 60 trading partners representing 99% of U.S. imports, arguing those countries had failed to adequately enforce bans on goods produced with forced labor.

The new duties took effect as temporary 10% global tariffs expired Friday. Those temporary levies had been adopted after the Supreme Court struck down Trump's broader tariff program in February.

Tariffs are a tax on imported goods, usually calculated as a percentage of the purchase price. While tariffs can shield domestic manufacturers by making foreign products more expensive, they are also used as a tool to penalize countries engaged in unfair trade practices, such as government subsidies or dumping goods below market value.

Trump has championed tariffs, arguing falsely that foreign nations bear the cost. In reality, it is American importers—businesses that purchase goods from abroad—that pay the tariffs, with the revenue going directly to the U.S. Treasury.

These companies often offset their increased costs by raising prices for consumers, meaning that tariffs ultimately function as a hidden tax on American shoppers.

People immediately got what Depp was putting down.

Turns out even one of literature's greediest misers is no fan of Trump.