On Cusp of Merger, ‘Digger Bombs for Warner Bros., ‘Verity’ Takes No. 1 at Box Office – WTOP News
Amazon MGM Studios' Verity opened at No. 1 with $32.6 million in North America while Digger finished fifth with $8 million, Box Office Mojo said.
- On Friday, October 2, 2026, Tom Cruise's satirical film 'Digger,' directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, opened to $8 million domestically and $20 million worldwide, significantly underperforming studio expectations.
- Warner Bros. greenlit the project at $125 million, but production overruns pushed net costs to $160–$180 million; polarized reviews holding 51% approval and a C+ CinemaScore compounded the commercial struggle.
- Industry sources estimate potential losses near $150 million, while the opening marks Cruise's lowest weekend in 19 years—falling below the $6.7 million debut of his 2007 drama 'Lions for Lambs.'
- Warner Bros. film chiefs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy are exiting before the studio's $111 billion merger with Paramount Skydance, while co-star Anne Hathaway has publicly defended 'Digger.'
- Cruise is scheduled to star in 'Days of Thunder 2' at Paramount, set for release June 2, 2028, offering the actor a chance to recover from this commercial underperformance.
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An immensely confident and wealthy man with a grandiose manner and a desire to be the best at everything. That is a brief description of oil tycoon Digger Rockwell, the main character of the film with the simple title Digger, which is currently heading to theaters. It is supposed to be a satire, but anyone who follows the career and private life of Tom Cruise, who took on the role, knows that the description partly fits him.
Tom Cruise's new movie bombed. Its director says making it scared the crap out of him.
"Digger" director Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu.Jesus Hellin/Getty ImagesOn paper, Alejandro González Iñárritu's new movie had all the trappings of a hit.The Oscar-winning director had assembled a star-studded cast led by the inimitable Tom Cruise. He had a twisty and surprising script that uses satire to tackle ambitious topics, and a talented team that built set pieces impressive enough to match.But he was still nervous about the execution."The …
Warner Bros even tried to turn bad criticism into publicity: he launched a campaign with negative phrases about "Digger", the film by Tom Cruise directed by Mexican Alejandro G. Iñárritu. But the audience did not bite, and the tape is on the way to being one of the biggest losses in film history, one of the most important ... Continue reading ""Digger" by Tom Cruise falls another 60% and is on the way to being the biggest disaster in cinema ever"
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