{
  "id": 12911887,
  "title": "<em>Digger </em>Was Too Much for Tom Cruise to Sell Alone",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/em-digger-em-was-too-much-for-tom-cruise-to-sell-alone",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-08T16:56:15.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Atlantic",
    "slug": "the-atlantic",
    "url": "https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/10/digger-tom-cruise-box-office-flop-explained/688934/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Tom Cruise's promotional strategy for the film Digger, which relied heavily on his star power, ultimately proved to be a gamble that backfired. The movie, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, is a satire of a satire that features Cruise in two roles: Digger Rockwell, a ruthless oil tycoon, and Curtis Markson, a play's star who is anxious about the ethical implications of his own project. Digger has been a commercial failure, grossing approximately $8 million during its opening weekend against a reported budget of up to $180 million. The film's complexity and cynicism stand in stark contrast to Cruise's persona as Hollywood's unofficial mayor, emphasizing the importance of seeing movies in theaters. Despite Cruise's captivating performance, the film's message is one of pessimism, highlighting the potential consequences of overstating the importance of entertainment. Other films released this year, such as The Social Reckoning and Artificial, also grapple with the same challenge of delivering disturbing stories in a world that is already fraught with challenges, but they do not rely on star power as heavily as Digger did.",
  "summary": "The new film is an odd, unpleasant fit for Hollywood’s most excitable champion.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}