Why Digger Is Trending: Tom Cruise's $8 Million Opening Is His Lowest in 19 Years, and the Film Is Not the Usual Cruise Movie
Digger, Alejandro G. Iñárritu's $125 million satire with Tom Cruise as an oil tycoon who triggers a disaster, opened to about $8 million in the US, his weakest start since 2007. Why a Cruise film flopped, who actually went to see it, what Cruise said afterwards and whether it can recover overseas.
Tom Cruise Sydney Premiere Mission Impossible part one. Photo: Eva Rinaldi Celebrity Photographer via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Tom Cruise films do not open to $8 million. Until this weekend, the last time one did was 2007. That is why "Digger" and "Tom Cruise flop" climbed the trends on Sunday, and why the story is more interesting than a simple failure.
What Digger is
Digger is a satirical comedy directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, the Oscar-winning director of Birdman and The Revenant. Cruise plays an egotistical oil tycoon whose actions cause a natural disaster. It is his first film since the Mission: Impossible series ended, and it is deliberately not an action movie. The budget has been reported at $125 million.
The opening
- Domestic: about $8 million, fifth place for the weekend.
- Comparison: Cruise's lowest opening since Lions for Lambs made $6.7 million in 2007.
- Audience: about 60 percent of ticket buyers were between 18 and 34, which Iñárritu has said was the target.
- CinemaScore: C+, the same grade as the weekend's winner, Verity.
Why it missed
The marketing sold a comedy of catastrophic proportions, in Cruise's own words from the teaser, to an audience that associates him with stunts. Older Cruise fans stayed away; younger viewers came but not in numbers that justify a $125 million budget. Reviews were mixed, and the film opened against Verity, which took the female-skewing audience, and holdovers like Resident Evil, which took the action crowd.
What Cruise said
In a statement reported by Deadline and the Hollywood Reporter, Cruise said he was proud of what we created and encouraged people to see it in cinemas. Iñárritu has framed the film as made for a younger generation and said he expects it to find its audience over time.
Can it recover
Cruise's films have historically earned 60 to 70 percent of their total overseas, and satire sometimes travels better than it opens. A long run in Europe and Asia, plus streaming, could still make the film respectable, but a theatrical profit on this budget looks unlikely.
Frequently asked questions
How much did Digger make on opening weekend?
About $8 million in the United States.
Is Digger Tom Cruise's worst opening?
His lowest since Lions for Lambs in 2007, which opened to $6.7 million.
Who directed Digger?
Alejandro G. Iñárritu.
What is Digger about?
A satirical comedy about an oil tycoon whose ego causes a natural disaster.
Will Digger release in India?
An Indian release date has not been widely reported.
