Tom Cruise has revealed why he refuses to judge a film by its opening weekend after his latest movie Digger suffered a disastrous start at the box office. The Hollywood heavyweight, 64, stars in Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s new black comedy, which reportedly cost more than $160 million (£120m) to make but pulled in just $8 million (£6m) in North America during its opening weekend.
Its worldwide debut of around $20 million (£15m) has left the film facing the prospect of enormous losses, with reports suggesting it would need to make roughly $350 million (£261m) globally just to break even.
Cruise on longevity over opening weekend
Cruise, however, has insisted immediate box office numbers are far from his mind when choosing what to make. Speaking on the On Film With Kevin McCarthy podcast in an interview released on the same day Digger arrived in cinemas, the Mission: Impossible star explained that he approaches his films with their longevity in mind.
‘When I am making [movies], I’m not going, “Opening weekend!”’ he said. ‘I feel very much like we’re going to make something that is a lasting piece of cinema.’
Cruise and director Iñárritu pointed to Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner as an example of a film whose reputation ultimately proved far more enduring than its initial reception. The 1982 sci-fi classic famously struggled commercially upon release and received a mixed critical response before going on to become one of the genre’s most celebrated films.
Changing theatrical landscape
Cruise said filmmakers can only hope their work similarly manages to ‘transcend’ its immediate reception. ‘You just hope you can make a film that can last,’ he continued.
The actor reflected on how dramatically the theatrical landscape has changed since the early decades of his career, recalling a time when successful movies could remain in cinemas for months. ‘I was fortunate to release movies in the ’80s and ’90s, when movies would stay in the theater for a year,’ he said. ‘With Rain Man and Born on the Fourth of July, these movies would just play and play for a year.
‘How can I make a film that can translate and last and evolve?’ And Cruise believes Digger could prove to be exactly that kind of movie, adding: ‘I feel that way… that is Digger, it’s one of those movies.’
Digger’s commercial prospects
It comes after the film delivered one of the weakest opening weekends of Cruise’s lengthy career. Its reported production budget sits between $160 million (£120m) and $180 million (£135m), while a further $100 million (£75m) is understood to have been spent marketing the blockbuster.
Following its $20 million global opening, Variety estimates Digger could ultimately lose between $150 million (£112m) and $200 million (£149m) theatrically.
The film marks a significant departure for Cruise after years dominated by huge action spectacles including the Mission: Impossible franchise and Top Gun: Maverick. He plays Digger Rockwell, a billionaire oil tycoon who finds himself facing an apocalyptic crisis after a malfunction at one of his Antarctic rigs sends the planet towards catastrophe.
The unusual satire has also sharply divided critics, with reactions ranging from declarations of a masterpiece to considerably less enthusiastic verdicts. Cruise has nevertheless remained publicly proud of the project. Marking its release on social media, he described making Digger as an ‘honor’ and thanked those involved in bringing it to the screen.
‘Thank you to the entire cast and crew for your dedication, hard work and joy,’ he wrote. ‘The experience was truly unforgettable and I’m so proud of what we created.’
Whether Digger eventually enjoys the kind of reassessment Cruise hopes for remains to be seen, but its immediate commercial fortunes make for a stark contrast with some of his biggest recent successes. Top Gun: Maverick became the biggest film of Cruise’s career in 2022, earning almost $1.5 billion (£1.1bn) worldwide. Digger, meanwhile, will have a considerably steeper climb if it is to turn its troubled opening into a long-term success.
