Johnny Depp to Star in and Produce First English-Language Adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov’s Classic ‘The Master and Margarita’
Johnny Depp is set to star in the first-ever English-language film adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov’s Russian literature classic “The Master and Margarita.”
The project, which currently does not have a director attached, is being produced by Depp’s own
IN.2 Film shingle in tandem with “Jeanne du Barry” producer Svetlana Dali and Grace Loh.
Dali and Loh will produce with Depp, Stephen Deuters and Stephen Malit. The project was announced at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival as part of its Red Sea Labs program. The Red Sea Fund partly financed “Jeanne du Barry.”
Production on the Depp-led “The Master and Margarita” is expected to start in late 2026.
“Set between 1930s Moscow, where the devil returns with his talking cat to cause havoc amongst its corrupt citizens, and Jerusalem during the time of Pontius Pilate, ‘The Master and Margarita’ tells a fantastical, satirical tale of love, artistic freedom and the eternal battle of good versus evil,” the synopsis says. “A third intertwined story follows a struggling writer and his lover, Margarita, who is willing to do anything to save him from the totalitarian system. What follows is a darkly comic, wildly imaginative tale of inexhaustible energy, philosophical depth, and spiritual rebellion — a work that remains ferociously relevant today and a timeless reminder of art’s power to challenge, illuminate and endure.”
Courtesy DDA
This project continues Dali’s collaboration with IN.2 following her executive producer roles on the Depp-led, “World Vision” and Red Sea Film Foundation backed “Jeanne du Barry” (2023) and “Modì: Three Days on the Wing of Madness” (2024). Natasha Rogal also produces, with Robert MacLean producing for Tribune Pictures. Executive producers include Nevin Shalit, Andrew Fourman, World Visions’ Konstantin Elkin, Tribune Pictures’ Michael Paletta and the late Michael Lang.
Depp is represented by Jack Whigham at Range Media.
