Tom Cruise and Alejandro G. Iñárritu are teaming up for the first time on a new project. Let’s “dig” in!
First announced in February 2024, Digger labels itself as “a comedy of catastrophic proportions.” Warner Bros. Pictures will release the highly anticipated film in theaters (including Imax) on Oct. 2.
Cruise and Iñárritu were recently spotted at CinemaCon 2026, where the actor stated, “I think I’ve worn out all of his films [watching them]. I’m so honored to work with you and inspired by what you create, my friend.” Iñárritu confirmed the movie filmed “in VistaVision,” the same format that Paul Thomas Anderson used for One Battle After Another.
Read on for everything to know about the first collaboration between these two Hollywood titans.
THE CAST
Cruise leads the cast as a character named Digger Rockwell. The ensemble also includes Sandra Hüller, John Goodman, Michael Stuhlbarg, Jesse Plemons, Sophie Wilde, Riz Ahmed, Emma D’Arcy, Robert John Burke, Burn Gorman, and Pip Torrens.
THE PLOT
The storyline of Digger is still being kept under wraps, but all we know at this point is that it’s a dark dramedy with possibly catastrophic undertones. Cruise and Iñárritu spoke a bit more about the project at CinemaCon on April 14.
“I started having the idea for this film nine years ago, and two years after that Tom and I started talking about the possibility of him becoming Digger Rockwell,” Iñárritu said. “We know he is fearless, but embodying this character is another kind of fearless.”
“I have to say, it was inspiring working with him,” Cruise added. “When you see this film it is the ne plus ultra across the board in terms of writing, production, and performance. This kind of movie is why i wanted to make movies. It took 40 years for me to put on the boots of Digger Rockwell… and I’m very grateful to Alejandro for this. … Also, the movie is wild. It’s funny, and I can’t wait for you to see it.”
Based on the extended teaser screened exclusively in the room, Digger appears to be nothing less than a cross between Dr. Strangelove and Citizen Kane. The film finds Cruise donning old-age makeup, a fake pot belly and a broad Southern accent to play a reclusive energy tycoon who ignored a key warning about one of his pipelines and causes a global catastrophe as a result.
He’s then ordered to put things right by Goodman’s aged U.S. president. “Digger got us into this mess, and Digger’s gotta dig us out again,” the commander in chief says. So with a shovel in hand and to the tune of the Talking Heads classic “Burning Down the House,” Rockwell throws himself into fixing what he’s broken.
THE POSTER
On Dec. 18, Warner Bros. released the first one-sheet for the film. “Tom Cruise is Digger,” it reads alongside the tagline, “A Comedy of Catastrophic Proportions.” The six letters of the movie title are in the shape of a person holding a shovel and wearing cowboy boots, all over an orange background.
THE TEASER
Also on Dec. 18, the studio unveiled a 49-second video introducing the world to Digger Rockwell, aka Cruise. The character’s shovel and cowboy boots open the teaser, and then he begins dancing strangely atop a railing at the beach. Hmm, anyone else getting Joker vibes? (A full trailer will be released at a later date.)
THE CREATIVES
Iñárritu directed and co-wrote the film from a screenplay that’s also by Alexander Dinelaris, Nicolás Giacobone, and Sabina Berman. Iñárritu, Cruise, and Mary Parent are the producers. Artisans include cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, film editor Conor O’Neill, casting director Francine Maisler, and costume designer Jacqueline West.
THE FILMING
Filming took place in and around the United Kingdom’s Pinewood Studios between November 2024 and May 2025. Lubezki shot the project on 35mm film using VistaVision. Reportedly, production was briefly halted in March when Goodman had to be hospitalized for a minor hip injury, though he returned two days later.
