The first trailer for Tom Cruise's long-teased movie Digger has finally been released, confirming that insider hype about the Hollywood star's dramatic transformation was not exaggerated. Collaborating with director Alejandro G. Iñárritu, the film has long been positioned as the one that will finally earn action-man Cruise his first acting Oscar. A special career retrospective trailer released two weeks prior further framed it as a new pinnacle for the 64-year-old actor.
Physical Transformation and Character Details
In Digger, Cruise plays eccentric cat-loving billionaire Digger Rockwell, complete with a pot belly, messy grey hair, and a broad Southern US drawl. Fans have noted this is his most extreme physical makeover since the fat suit and bald cap he wore for Tropic Thunder's Les Grossman in 2008. The trailer opens with Digger musing, "Everything changes, you know? One day, you're a cat – or a king. Next day, you're just ashes in a box," as he dresses with his beer belly hanging over his boxer shorts. He then coos over a cat he holds like a baby, imploring, "Just take a little taste for Daddy. Come on, sweetheart."
Plot and Key Scenes
The film positions Digger as "the most powerful man in the world" who must "race to prove he is humanity's saviour before the disaster he unleashed destroys everything." In one scene, Digger dismisses a potentially catastrophic five-foot crack on a glacier in Greenland, asking an employee, "What, do you want me to shut down a billion-dollar platform over something that's 10 times the size of my d**k?" Later, the US President (John Goodman) is briefed that the country is "utterly unprotected against a disaster of this magnitude" as nuclear plants are damaged by a tsunami. The president responds, "Digger here got us into this mess and Digger's gonna dig us again," followed by snippets of Cruise dancing with a spade. Riz Ahmed's character Ganesh reprimands Digger: "You knew long before the rest of us. That is why it is your problem!" In a climactic moment, Digger accompanies the president on a military bomber plane, who unloads a warhead and yells, "F**k this iceberg. Let's dance!"
Fan Reactions and Oscar Buzz
Comparisons to Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove were immediate. Fan Tedward commented on YouTube: "Reminds me of Dr Strangelove. I'm all in." @WaterHazard86 agreed, writing, "The Tom Cruise-ification of Dr Strangelove… I'm sold." Gonzalo Frías noted on Instagram: "Dr Strangelove for our times, in Iñarritu we trust and Tom's getting his Oscar for acting, long overdue." @thatonethingthatsathing quipped, "Finally, a movie where Tom Cruise's most dangerous stunt is raw unfiltered acting." Another fan exclaimed, "PEAK PEAK PEAK PEAK. I'VE SEEN ENOUGH. GIVE THIS MAN AN OSCAR."
Cast and Production
Cruise is a three-time acting Academy Award nominee for Born on the Fourth of July (1989), Jerry Maguire (1996), and Magnolia (2000), in addition to a producing nomination for Top Gun: Maverick. The cast also includes Sandra Hüller, Jesse Plemons, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Sophie Wilde. The screenplay was written by Iñárritu alongside Alexander Dinelaris, Nicolás Giacobone, and Sabina Berman.
Director and Star Comments
At a special trailer launch event on the Warner Bros lot in Hollywood, Iñárritu sent a video message saying, "The transformation he went through was astonishing. 'Alejandro, it took me 40 years to become this character,' he told me once." Iñárritu added, "And I think we both know what it means to carry an entire career into a single moment like this. We both knew that throughout our journeys, we had never done anything even close to this." Cruise agreed, reiterating to attendees, according to The Hollywood Reporter, "I have never had something that could challenge me in this way and neither has Alejandro when we went in, ever. And when you see this film, it's totally original."
Release Date
Digger is scheduled for release in cinemas on October 2, 2026.
