Alejandro González Iñárritu’s film earned about $8 million in the U.S. and less than $20 million worldwide in its opening weekend, against a reported production budget near $180 million.
Alejandro González Iñárritu’s new comedy Digger, starring Tom Cruise, opened well below expectations, taking about $8 million in the United States and just under $20 million worldwide in its first weekend. Variety called the release a flop and reported sharply negative reviews. The film scored 51% on Rotten Tomatoes and a C+ in CinemaScore exit polls, according to the trade publication.
The production budget is close to $180 million, while worldwide marketing reportedly added about $100 million. An earlier estimate of $125 million was later corrected by the production, the Italian report said. With costs at that level, Digger’s opening makes a theatrical break-even increasingly difficult, although its final gross has yet to be determined.
Warner Bros. kept the film off major festivals and leaned on Cruise’s star power and social-media promotion. Digger is an auteur satire with environmental themes and black humour; Cruise plays an oil tycoon whose actions trigger a potential global disaster. Variety said the actor’s global fame was not enough to guarantee audiences would turn out for an unconventional film.
Iñárritu’s earlier movies were profitable: Birdman grossed about $103 million on an $18 million budget, while The Revenant earned more than $530 million against a $135 million budget. Digger’s opening places it among costly auteur projects that struggled commercially. The Italian report cited Heaven’s Gate, Lolita, The Postman and Megalopolis as other examples.