Tom Cruise's 'Digger' Faces Dire Box Office Forecast and Aggressive Ads
Tom Cruise’s big-budget comedy “Digger” is tracking for a disappointing opening weekend, per Variety. The Warner Bros. film, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, is now projected to debut between $12 million and $15 million domestically, down from earlier forecasts of $18-$20 million.
The movie reportedly cost between $160 million and $180 million to produce, though a studio spokesperson disputes those figures. According to executives familiar with such films, per Variety, a project of this size would need a $40 million opening and roughly $350 million globally to break even after marketing. Warner Bros. contends the break-even point is $300 million.
Meanwhile, Warner Bros. has launched an aggressive ad campaign directly addressing the film’s divisive critical reception. The Hollywood Reporter says the ad shows contrasting critic quotes like “Unpleasant” vs. “Masterpiece” before Cruise’s character declares, “Fuck those people!” The ad urges moviegoers to “decide for yourself.”
Cruise and Iñárritu recently appeared at an Academy Museum screening to champion the project. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Cruise emphasized the film’s handmade nature, stating, “People want real things and they want real experiences.” Iñárritu described the difficult process of finding the film’s unusual tone during production.
“Digger” stars Cruise as an oil tycoon whose drilling triggers a global ecological crisis. It opens in theaters on October 2.
