The latest look at Tom Cruise’s wild new character has given fans plenty to talk about. From his unusually blunt take on life to a bizarre piece of movie-theater merchandise, Digger is already being tossed around as one of Cruise’s strangest roles yet.
Tom Cruise motivates people as Digger
Cruise slips into the role of Digger Rockwell, a crude Southern-talking oil tycoon facing an environmental disaster he helped create. In character, he offers a relatable message, saying, “Life is hard,” adding that “he knows it,” the audience knows it, and sometimes it simply “su**s.” He then asks what would happen if he stopped doing what he does.
The reaction online has been very enthusiastic, with fans praising Cruise’s commitment to the bizarre persona. One fan called him a “legend” and said the performance looked like something worth seeing in theaters.
Others joked about Risky Business 2. Another fan asked, “Tom you have to be honest with me. Tom, please listen. Tom do you sing in this movie. Do you sing Tom.”
Digger popcorn bucket is literally a boot
The character’s cowboy image does not stop at the screen. Moviegoers wondering about the promotional popcorn container now have their answer. Digger’s bucket takes the shape of an actual boot. The design immediately became another talking point, with fans loving its ridiculousness rather than questioning it.
“Finally, a bucket that matches the cowboy energy,” one fan wrote, while another joked that the popcorn in the toe would be stale before the trailers ended, but still planned to buy it.
Others compared the growing theater-merch trend to the Dune sandworm.
Another fan wrote that Cruise “may have finally found a boot he cannot jump out of.”
Alejandro G. Iñárritu directs the October 2 theatrical release, with Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg and Jesse Plemons joining Cruise. Iñárritu said he conceived Digger years ago and wanted Cruise for the role, while Cruise said the transformation took “40 years” to reach (via Deadline). The production also reunited Iñárritu with The Revenant cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki and used VistaVision.
