Johnny Depp's interpretation of The Big Bad Wolf for the much-hyped musical Into The Woods has been unveiled.

Entertainment Weekly has four special covers previewing the fairytale characters from Rob Marshall's big-screen adaptation of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Broadway show.

Depp's Big Bad Wolf had previously only been seen as a fleeting glimpse of a paw in the teaser trailer for the film, due to hit cinemas in December.

But the cover photo, taken with young Broadway star Lilla Crawford as his Red Riding Hood, shows Depp's wolf in a Twenties mobster inspired blue fur suit, accessorised with a red handkerchief and matching fedora hat, as well as a whiskery moustache, bushy eyebrows and long black claws.

Oscar-winning director Rob said: "I didn't want this to look like a cartoon world. It's not sunny, sunny, sunny - we wanted a sense of danger."

And Meryl told the magazine: "I've been offered many witches over the years, starting when I was 40, and I said no to all of them.

"But this was really fun because it played with the notion of what witches mean. They represented age and ugliness and scary powers we don't understand. So here's my opportunity to say, here's what you wish for when you're getting old."