Denis Villeneuve Rallies Behind Tom Cruise’s Divisive ‘Digger’ as Directors Keep Defending the Box Office Flop

Few films this year have split opinion as sharply as Tom Cruise’s ‘Digger.’ It arrived with a big star, a big budget and a famously serious director attempting a comedy, and it left critics and audiences arguing about whether it was a bold swing or a spectacular miss. Weeks after its release, the debate hasn’t cooled.

What has changed is who is joining the conversation. A growing list of respected filmmakers has stepped forward to defend the film, including Michael Mann, Ron Howard, Hideo Kojima and Alfonso Cuarón. Their support has given the movie a second life among cinephiles, even as its box office struggles.

The latest name on that list is Denis Villeneuve, whose praise for ‘Digger’ came during a Directors Guild of America screening and Q&A with Alejandro G. Iñárritu. The conversation was later released on the DGA’s ‘The Director’s Cut’ podcast, where the ‘Dune’ filmmaker called the film a comedy with real fury behind it and a very important mirror for audiences. He closed by telling Iñárritu he considers the movie a total success.

Villeneuve was particularly taken with Iñárritu’s appetite for risk. He said that movie after movie, Iñárritu keeps pushing boundaries and putting himself in a dangerous position artistically. Coming from a director who has built his own career on ambitious bets, the compliment carries weight.

He also singled out the film’s handmade craft. Villeneuve praised the miniatures and practical effects, admitting a few shots completely fooled him. He added that the film’s theatrical, stagey framework allowed Iñárritu to develop a unique visual language, and he complimented the score as well.

Villeneuve also praised Cruise’s performance, which Iñárritu said surprised him with its verbal and physical precision. That’s a notable endorsement for an actor best known for action franchises. ‘Digger’ is Cruise’s first original film since ‘American Made’ in 2017, and it asks him to play a very different kind of character.

Cruise stars as Digger Rockwell, an aging oil magnate whose drilling sets off an ecological disaster. The film is a satirical black comedy that follows his frantic effort to prove he’s humanity’s savior before the disaster he unleashed destroys everything. It’s Iñárritu’s first English-language film since ‘The Revenant.’

The project had a bumpy path. According to the conversation, it collapsed twice during pre-production, forcing Iñárritu to set it aside temporarily and make ‘Bardo’ instead. The finished film shot in the UK for 6 months and was filmed entirely in VistaVision.

The ensemble cast includes Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg, Jesse Plemons, Sophie Wilde and Emma D’Arcy. Warner Bros. released it on October 2, making it the studio’s final release before its acquisition by Paramount Skydance on October 6.

Praise from directors hasn’t translated into ticket sales. The film has reportedly grossed about $41 million worldwide against a production budget estimated between $125 million and $180 million. One newspaper called it a major flop, and a box office analyst said it simply isn’t working.

Reviews have been polarized. Some critics have admired the ambition and Cruise’s commitment, while others have debated Iñárritu’s deliberately eccentric approach. On Letterboxd, the film holds a 3.8 out of 5, edging past Cruise’s classic ‘Top Gun,’ which suggests a more enthusiastic audience among cinephiles.

Diggin’ it. Watch the new #DiggerMovie trailer. DIGGER only in theaters October 2. https://t.co/QLhmfXpyW4

— Digger (@diggerthemovie) July 18, 2026

Directors tend to respect directors who swing big, and public backing can help a divisive film find an audience over time. Many movies that struggled in theaters have been reevaluated later, especially when respected filmmakers keep championing them. That could be the path ahead for ‘Digger.’

For Villeneuve, the timing is interesting too. His own ‘Dune: Part Three’ arrives on December 18 from Warner Bros., and he has a very big swing of his own coming with James Bond. Publicly backing a risky film from a fellow auteur is a reminder of how he approaches the craft.

For now, ‘Digger’ remains one of the year’s most argued-about releases. Whether it ends up remembered as a failure or a misunderstood satire may depend on how many more filmmakers join Villeneuve in its corner.

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