Tom Cruise Digger Faces Box‑Office Trouble as Warner Bros.…

The climate‑satire starring Tom Cruise is projected to open with $12‑15 million, far below early forecasts and rivaling recent Warner titles.

Warner Bros. Is set to roll out its swan‑song as an independent studio this Friday, dropping the Alejandro G. Iñárritu‑directed satire Digger. Tom Cruise dons a balding, oil‑rich Texas magnate who inadvertently triggers a climate disaster and then tries to fix it. The film arrives just days before Warner’s assets shift to Paramount, making it the final title to carry the Warner Bros. Banner alone.

Industry trackers have trimmed the opening weekend to a $12‑15 million window, a figure that lags behind the $22 million debut of last year’s One Battle After Another. Early ticket sales suggest the movie is pulling roughly half of what that drama collected before its release day. The modest outlook sits against a $125 million budget that left no stone unturned – from Emmanuel Lubezki’s VistaVision lenses to an animatronic half‑dead cat that prowls the set.

Critics are split down the middle. Rotten Tomatoes lists the film at a flat 50 percent, with half of the 127 reviews praising Cruise’s turn and the film’s sharp edge, while the other half dismiss it as self‑indulgent noise. One reviewer applauded the “bonkers moments”, another called the whole thing “claptrap”. The divided chorus has prompted Warner to push a “Decide for Yourself” campaign, hoping curiosity will outweigh the mixed buzz.

The studio’s gamble isn’t limited to the box office. Digger is being positioned as an awards contender, with hopes that Cruise could snag a fourth Oscar nod. Marketing has leaned heavily on his star power, looping together clips from Top Gun, Mission: Impossible and Jerry Maguire before unveiling his oil‑tycoon look. Yet the same campaign warns that the film’s tone veers far from the usual summer fare, which may alienate casual viewers.

Competing for adult‑driven audiences are a handful of heavyweight releases. Brad Pitt’s survival thriller Heart of the Beast targets the same demographic, while Amazon’s Verity – a Colleen Hoover adaptation starring Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson – is expected to dominate the opening weekend with a $35 million plus haul. Horror fans can still chase Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil reboot, and prestige‑circuit regulars have A24’s Primetime and Mahershala Ali’s Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother in the mix.

If Digger fails to carve a niche, it could join a string of recent Warner misfires that have strained the studio’s balance sheet. Past flops like The Bride! and Supergirl have already dented confidence, and the upcoming Clayface and The Cat in the Hat will likely be absorbed by Paramount after the merger closes.

For now, the film’s fate rests on whether enough moviegoers will brave the polarizing premise and the heavy‑weight competition. The Friday release will be the last time audiences see a Warner Bros. Logo unaccompanied, and the box‑office numbers will signal how the studio’s final solo effort is remembered.

What’s Next?

The merger finalizes next week, handing Warner’s library to Paramount. Digger’s performance could influence how the new parent approaches awards‑season campaigns for legacy titles. Meanwhile, the industry will watch the weekend numbers to gauge whether star‑driven satire still commands a crowd in a crowded market.