Tom Cruise's First Original Movie in 9 Years Draws Wildly Divided First Reactions

Tom Cruise has spent the better part of the last decade saving the world, saving movie theaters, flying fighter jets, and repeatedly attempting to kill himself for our entertainment, so playing an eccentric oil tycoon who accidentally screws over the entire planet counts as taking it easy. The thing is, having spent that time giving us the most crowd-pleasing entertainment imaginable, now people can't seem to agree on whether his latest movie is a masterpiece or an absolute disaster.

In Digger, Cruise plays Digger Rockwell alongside Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal), John Goodman (The Big Lebowski), Sandra Hüller (Anatomy of a Fall), Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man), Jesse Plemons (Civil War), Sophie Wilde (Talk to Me), Emma D’Arcy (House of the Dragon), Robert John Burke (RoboCop 3), and Burn Gorman (Pacific Rim).

Alejandro G. Iñárritu directs from a screenplay written with Alexander Dinelaris, Nicolás Giacobone, and Sabina Berman, with a story credited to Berman, Iñárritu, and Jez Butterworth. The movie also reunites the director with Oscar-winning cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, and was shot entirely in VistaVision.

Early reactions to Digger have officially landed ahead of its October 2 release, and “mixed” doesn’t really cover it. The first wave ranges from calling the movie “audacious” and “powder keg cinema” to describing it as “a mess” and saying it simply “wasn’t enjoyable.” Cruise’s performance is getting similarly fascinating reactions, with some already throwing around the words “Academy Award” while another reaction calls him the “least interesting actor” on screen.

That’s a pretty dramatic response for Cruise, whose recent career has been dominated by broadly acclaimed blockbusters including Top Gun: Maverick and the Mission: Impossible movies. Warner Bros. itself has described Digger as Cruise’s first original film in nearly a decade, with the actor playing Digger Rockwell, the world’s most powerful man, who desperately attempts to prove he can save humanity from a catastrophe he caused himself.

Is 'Digger' Worth Watching?

Well, it certainly seems like it isn't boring. Jake Kleinman praised the movie while warning that its biggest swings aren’t going to work for everyone. He compared its sensibility more to Charlie Kaufman than Stanley Kubrick and suggested some of its major twists are almost designed to annoy audiences:

“Digger is definitely not for everyone, but I loved it. The big twists are going to piss off a lot of people, but the payoff is worth it. The vibe is much more Kaufman than Kubrick. Cruise is great, but he’s the least interesting actor onscreen next to John Goodman and Riz Ahmed.”

Joey Magidson landed firmly on the other side. While praising Cruise and Riz Ahmed, he argued that Iñárritu’s enormous swing simply doesn’t come together:

“Digger is a mess. Tom Cruise and Alejandro G. Iñárritu are taking a massive swing here, but despite some great production design and a commitment to their big choices, not a whole lot works here. Cruise is good and Riz Ahmed is a highlight, but man this wasn’t enjoyable.”

And somehow, those aren’t even the furthest apart these reactions get. Hoai-Tran Bui came away “very mixed” on the movie, praising Cruise while saying other parts were “absolutely insufferable.” Bui even joked that she hadn’t previously considered herself a devoted Iñárritu hater, “but now I kind of get it!”

Meanwhile, Jake Hamilton called Digger his favorite movie of 2026, which is quite the distance from “absolutely insufferable.” Hamilton deliberately avoided spoilers before seeing the movie and said its surprises consequently landed particularly well:

“Digger is my favorite film of ‘26 — I avoided spoilers, so the surprises had an incredible impact. A bit Kubrick, a bit Black Mirror but also feels original — a surreal, weird, funny study on (human) nature and storytelling. Tom Cruise’s performance ranks among his career best.”

Jana N Nagase was similarly enthusiastic, describing the movie as “funky & wild” and highlighting another enormous twist that apparently shouldn’t be spoiled before audiences see it. Nagase reserved most of the praise for Cruise, who seems to be going somewhere very different from Ethan Hunt or Pete Mitchell: “Digger is funky & wild, with bold visuals & an outstanding production design! There’s a huge twist I wasn’t expecting. Tom Cruise proves once more he’s the best at what he does; he’s unhinged, wonderfully chaotic, unrecognizable. He’s phenomenal in the role!”

Courtney Howard was just as effusive, describing what Iñárritu has made as “powder keg cinema”:

“Digger RIPS! Iñárritu creates powder keg cinema, exploding in blistering heat & dazzling fireworks. A masterfully compelling, electric & audaciously assured satirical farce. Tom Cruise gives a brilliant, boldly invigorated, tour de force performance. Riz Ahmed, a standout!”

Simon Thompson, meanwhile, called the movie an “audacious vision executed on a grand scale,” but argued that its sociopolitical satire is “far from a home run.” Mike Ryan praised Cruise’s commitment while finding several plot decisions “baffling” and the movie generally unpleasant, while Kristen Lopez called the whole thing a “very mixed bag.”

Then there’s Jim Hemphill, who called Cruise’s work his best performance since Magnolia and described Digger as “one of the most visually inventive, conceptually audacious, and unpredictable studio movies ever made.”

So, yeah. Good luck working out a consensus from that lot. Digger arrives in theaters and IMAX on October 2, 2026.