The Best Scrooge Portrayals
Charles Dickens’ 1834 novella is hands down the most popular fictional Christmas story. The book has never once been out of print in almost 2 centuries, has been printed in countless languages, and actually inspired a lot of modern Western Christmas festivities. It features a lot of now iconic characters like the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, & Yet to Come, Jacob Marley, Bob Cratchit, Tiny Tim, but none more iconic than the ‘bah-humbing’ protagonist himself, Ebenezer Scrooge. The novel has been adapted to film & television countless times, so a lot of different actors have donned the mantle of Scrooge. On this list we’ll highlight 20 times the character was put to film!
Daniel Smith in Scrooge, or, Marley’s Ghost (1901) - We’ll roll in chronological order here and while we won’t highlight every actor we will hit the most prominent. Now I’d be shocked if anyone reading this had seen, or even heard of this 1901 silent trick film (trick films were early films that were made to primarily show off new technical innovations). And while I haven’t seen every film here, I did do my due diligence on this one and you can too by taking 6 minutes to watch it free on YouTube HERE. This was actually the first ever film adaptation of Scrooge and was an incredibly ambitious undertaking at the time, both technically & for the fact it put a full novella into a 6 minute runtime. It manages to still effectively convey the general story, mostly in part due to the physicalist of Daniel Smith, in Smith’s only onscreen acting role.
Seymour Hicks in Scrooge (1935) - We skip forward a few decades for our next Scrooge, played by Seymour Hicks in the feature length sound adaptation of the novella. Hicks was actually already a veteran Ebenezer by this point, having already played the character on stage as early as 1901 and appearing in a 1913 silent film as Scrooge. The year this film was released, it was actually shown in the White House on Christmas night by FDR.
Reginald Owen in A Christmas Carol (1938) - Just a few years later, Reginald Owen would play Scrooge onscreen in this MGM production of the story. The film also starred a real life married couple, Gene & Kathleen Lockhart as the Cratchits, with their daughter, June, also appearing as their onscreen daughter. The film has been criticized for Gene Lockhart being perceived as looking too ‘well fed’ to play Cratchit which is a wild thing to say in my opinion, and it also is one of the few adaptations where Bob Cratchit is actually fired by Scrooge, not just threated with it. As of writing this article, this film has a 100% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes & one cast member, Terry Kilburn who played Tiny Tim, is still alive and rocking at age 98!
Alastair Sim in A Christmas Carol (1951) & A Christmas Carol (1971) - Sim is actually my personal favorite Scrooge, as I watched both adaptations that he leads last year. The 1951 version, known outside of the US as ‘Scrooge’ is and I think is one of the strongest adaptations. While they are all mostly similar, this one rises above for me because of Sim. 20 years later, Sim would voice Scrooge in an animated television special, that is considered one of the most faithful adaptations of the story, managing to include previously excluded scenes and still maintaining a 25 minute run. The film has some extremely haunting visuals & was praised upon release, actually winning the Oscar for Best Animated Short.
Albert Finney in Scrooge (1970) - Another acclaimed release, this musical adaptation was released a year prior the 1971 special, leading ‘A Christmas Carol’ to be represented in back to back Oscar ceremonies. This 1970 version received 4 nominations, for Art Direction, Costume Design, Song Score, & Original Song, though it lost all 4 awards. Albert Finney portrayed Scrooge and actually won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical. The development for this film was rooted in the prior success of 1968’s ‘Oliver!’ another musical adaptation of a Dickens’ work.
Walter Matthau in The Stingiest Man in Town (1978) - Another television special, this one comes from Christmas legends, Rankin & Bass. Known for both their traditional & stop motion animated holiday specials, they took their shot at the popular story. Their animated take featured the voice of Oscar winner Walter Matthau was Scrooge, AKA the Stingiest Man in Town. The story is told from the point of view of an insect narrator, B. A. H. Humbug, voiced by ‘Happy Days’ star Tom Bosley.
Henry Winkler in An American Christmas Carol (1979) - From one ‘Happy Days’ alum to another. A loose adaptation of the story, this time set in New Hampshire, Henry Winkler plays the Scrooge figure, named Benedict Slade. A businessman, Slade is visited by the Debtors of Christmas Past, Present, & Future and actually features several direct mentions of ‘A Christmas Carol.’
Alan Young in Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983) - In this animated Disney adaptation, the shoes of Ebenezer Scrooge are filled by the second most famous Scrooge, Scrooge McDuck, who is named after the Dickens’ character. This was the version of the story I grew up watching, so I associate most of the characters with their Disney counterparts still to this day. Ebenezer Scrooge McDuck is voiced by Alan Young, who voiced McDuck for over 40 years. This 26 minute version received an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature, marking the first nomination for Mickey in that category in nearly 40 years.
George C. Scott in A Christmas Carol (1984) - A made-for-tv film, this one stars Oscar winner George C. Scott as Scrooge who is shown as a little more ruthless in this version. Not only is he mean, but he laughs at & enjoys his own meanness. Scott was nominated for an Emmy for his performance.
Bill Murray in Scrooged (1988) - From legendary director Richard Donner, this film serves as a modern day version of the story. It stars Bill Murray as Frank Cross, a cynical TV executive with no remorse, our Scrooge figure. The film served as Murray’s return to a leading role after a 4-year long hiatus post-Ghostbusters and was a commercial & critical hit. It received an Oscar nomination for Best Makeup, which it lost to ‘Beetlejuice.’
Michael Caine in The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) - This is the only version of the story that is an annual rewatch in the Wilson household! The film has continued to grow in popularity since its release, becoming a staple for many, including my wife. The brilliance of this movie is two fold. First, is the brilliance of the Muppets. But what pushes it over the top is Michael Caine as Scrooge. When asked if he would play Scrooge, Caine replied ‘I'm going to play this movie like I'm working with the Royal Shakespeare Company. I will never wink, I will never do anything Muppety. I am going to play Scrooge as if it is an utterly dramatic role and there are no puppets around me’ And that folks, is what makes the movie.
Jack Palance in Ebenezer (1998) - Another adaptation that took a different route, this film is actually a Western and stars Jack Palance as Scrooge. A Canadian made-for-TV film, it’s pretty niche, but I wanted to include it since it’s a little different.
Ernest Borgnine in An All Dogs Christmas Carol (1998) - The 1989 film ‘All Dogs Go to Heaven’ was a success that a resulted in a sequel, TV series, & direct to VHS holiday film, which brings us here. Ernest Borgnine voices Carface Caruthers, a pitbull/bulldog mix who fills the Scrooge role.
Patrick Stewart in A Christmas Carol (1999) - Another made-for-TV movie, Patrick Stewart helms the Scrooge mantle here in his SAG-nominated performance. The film also features Richard E. Grant in the role of Bob Cratchit and was inspired by Stewart’s one man shows of the story he had been performing for years prior.
Kelsey Grammer in A Christmas Carol (2004) - And yet another made-for-TV movie, but alas, this one is a musical! Starring Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge, the film also features Jane Krakowski, Jesse L. Martin, Geraldine Chaplin, Jennifer Love Hewitt, & Jason Alexander as the three ghosts, Scrooge’s young love, & Jacob Marley, respectively. Taking inspiration from ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Scrooge actually encounters people resembling all three ghosts prior to his night time sequence with the spectres.
Jim Carrey in A Christmas Carol (2009) - I think this is probably the most popular version of the film in 2025, maybe aside from the Muppets. From director Robert Zemeckis, this film uses the creepy looking motion capture animated that was all the buzz at the time and we see in another Christmas film, ‘The Polar Express.’ Similar to Tom Hanks in that film, Jim Carrey actually takes on multiple roles in this film, playing Scrooge & all 3 ghosts. Gary Oldman also pulls triple duty, playing Jacob Marley, Bob Cratchit, & the motion capture for Tiny Tim. We also get the vocal talents of Colin Firth, Bob Hoskins, Robin Wright, & Cary Elwes.
Christopher Plummer in The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017) - This film is actually more of a biopic about Dickens as he wrote the story than an adaptation of the story itself. Dan Stevens stars as the writer and we see him interacting with the characters as he’s imagining & penning the story. The legendary Christopher Plummer leads the cast of fictional characters who help Dickens himself have an existential Scrooge-like revelation.
Guy Pearce in A Christmas Carol (2019) - Okay I’m cheating a bit because this originally aired as a three episode series on FX. However, it was subsequently released as a single film on TV, so I decided I’d let it slide. Guy Pearce stars alongside Andy Serkis, Stephen Graham, & Joe Alwyn in this dark fantasy take on the story. Meant for an adult audience, it showcases the darker sides of the story. Since it includes adult language, nudity, horror elements, & several sensitive topics, I’d say maybe don’t watch this one with the kiddos. Or at all. Your call.
Luke Evans in Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (2022) - This 2022 film is an adaptation of an adaptation, because it is actually adapting the 1970 musical into an animated musical. Receiving mixed to negative reviews, the film was mostly overlooked upon its Netflix release, but features some heavy hitting voices with Luke Evans as Scrooge and Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Jonathan Pryce, & James Cosmo filling out more of the cast.
Will Ferrell in Spirited (2022) - We’ve finally made it to the end! I’m kind of spoiling a plot point from the movie, but Will Ferrell is the Ghost of Christmas Present in this one, later revealed to be Ebenezer Scrooge who assumed the role after his death. A musical comedy, it features the three ghosts (Ferrell, Sunita Mani as Christmas Past, & Tracy Morgan as the voice of Christmas Yet to Come).
That’s the final entry I have, though I should mention the November 2025 release, ‘Christmas Karma’ a Bollywood inspired English musical starring Kunal Nayyar in the Scrooge role with Hugh Bonneville as Jacob Marley and Eva Longoria, Billy Porter, & Boy George as the Ghosts. There are also two more versions on the horizon one from Ti West starring Johnny Depp as Scrooge & one from Robert Eggers with Willem Dafoe as the frontrunner to play Scrooge.
