"Digger": Tom Cruise Takes a Risk in Iñárritu's Bleak Comedy on World's End

Imagine Tom Cruise, the star known for defying gravity on skyscrapers and planes, in the most unexpected role of his career. This is "Digger," the new cinematic offering from acclaimed director Alejandro González Iñárritu. With a $125 million budget, this bleak comedy is not only a bold shift for Cruise but also a biting climate change satire that invites us to reflect on our own inertia.

The film, reviewed by the Los Angeles Times on September 29, 2026, features Cruise as Digger Rockwell, a Texan oil magnate. Digger unwittingly unleashes a global catastrophe by drilling in Greenland. This production marks a turning point for both: Iñárritu, known for his intense dramas like "Birdman" and "The Revenant," and Cruise, who ventures far from his successful action franchises.

An Unrecognizable Tom Cruise

After a decade of safe roles in blockbuster sequels such as "Mission: Impossible" and "Top Gun," Tom Cruise dives into a character that breaks from his established image. In "Digger," he appears unrecognizable, covered in prosthetics that give him a “grotesque” appearance, according to critics. The Los Angeles Times describes his character, Digger Rockwell, as a “gnarled billionaire” and compares him to an “undisinterred Ross Perot.” The film features him in peculiar scenes, such as one where an elderly cat, Maggie, licks wet chow from his pinkie nail. It's a raw and unvarnished portrait of a man who, despite his wealth, finds himself in a decaying environment, even with his bed soaked in cat pee. This is, without a doubt, Cruise's riskiest gamble in years, a true artistic “leap of faith.”

Iñárritu's Vision: A Satire of the World's End

Alejandro González Iñárritu, a director who has won two consecutive Oscars, offers in "Digger" a work that the Los Angeles Times calls a “self-conscious hybrid of Stanley Kubrick and Bertolt Brecht.” The film is a bleak comedy about how humanity should react to the collapse of civilization. The initial plot follows Digger as he discovers an ice shelf has broken off his Greenland drilling site. This event threatens “gen-oil-cide” in Norway.

Faced with the impending catastrophe, Digger convenes an emergency summit at his mansion, attended by the President (played by a formidable John Goodman) and his Cabinet. However, instead of seeking real solutions, the leaders focus on praying and planning how to cover their own backs. The cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki, with whom Iñárritu has collaborated on other occasions, uses unflattering low angles and a “formaldehyde sheen” aesthetic to portray these powerful figures, making their jowls appear to melt symbolically alongside the polar ice caps.

“Fossil Fools”: The Play Within the Film

Just as the audience adjusts to the absurdity of the situation, Iñárritu delivers a seismic jolt. Digger's tragic day, and by extension, humankind's, turns out to be a stage play within the film, titled “Fossil Fools.” This narrative, written by Iñárritu, Sabina Berman, Alexander Dinelaris, and Nicolás Giacobone, reveals that the trees outside the window are fake, the gas-guzzling private plane is a prop on a stick, and Digger himself is an actor named Curtis. Curtis, who isn't particularly political, complains to the young director, Hannah (Sophie Wilde), that he doesn't understand the humor behind his character's sociopathy.

The Los Angeles Times points out that “Fossil Fools” is based on a tragedy that already happened outside the stage doors, and what we're watching are merely the aftershocks. The film poses a key question: why are we watching this? It's not a perfect play, and its ending is “especially weak,” but the reaction of the fictional audience, who cackle with laughter, makes us question whether catharsis is truly a solution. Jesse Plemons portrays Kenny, a producer who offers clues about this underlying tragedy.

A Collapsing World: Details and Reflections

“Digger” is a film devoid of overt emotions, a mirror that reflects our “cold and cruel fears,” as stated in the review. It doesn't offer solutions but instead focuses on inertia and the abdication of responsibility. Visual details are crucial: ceilings springing leaks, coffee makers exploding, and Dennis Gassner's phenomenal production design all contribute to the sense of a decaying world. Even Maggie, the cat, the only living animal in Digger's house, is “decomposing in his arms,” according to his sister (Sandra Hüller).

Iñárritu uses a robot to play the pitiful Maggie, creating an artificial horror as uncanny as Cruise himself in his prosthetic skin suit. The film is not easy to digest, but its existence is celebrated by critics for its audacity. The story also features Riz Ahmed as the scientist Dr. Ganesh, who insists that even Digger cannot change the ocean currents. The film garnered media attention even before its release, with Tom Cruise, Jesse Plemons, and John Goodman attending the unveiling of a special poster designed by Ed Ruscha at LACMA, one day before the review's publication, as also reported by the Los Angeles Times.

If you're interested in the world of film and television, we invite you to read other notes, such as the one exploring Netflix's new "East of Eden" series or how HBO's series "War" turns a divorce into a compelling plot.

Why It Matters

“Digger” goes beyond conventional entertainment. It's a bold statement from two Hollywood powerhouses, pushing us to confront uncomfortable realities about climate change and human responsibility. It uses bleak humor and a complex narrative structure to spark a much-needed conversation. It's a reminder that cinema, in the hands of creators willing to take risks, can be a powerful, sometimes unsettling mirror that shakes us out of our complacency.