Tom Cruise Film Digger Debuts Next Month

No matter the movie, Tom Cruise commits himself fully. In the Mission: Impossible films, if Ethan Hunt has to climb the world’s tallest skyscraper, Cruise climbs that skyscraper. For the 2008 action comedy Tropic Thunder, Cruise showed equal commitment by wearing meaty arm prosthetics and dancing to Ludacris to play bullying movie producer Les Grossman. That role remains memorable for how strange and funny it was. In three weeks, Tom Cruise exercises his comedic muscles once again with Digger, which looks just as outrageous as his work in Tropic Thunder.

Digger follows an ultra-rich oil tycoon named Digger Rockwell, played by Cruise. His oil rig explodes near Antarctica and triggers a global environmental disaster. Because of his vast wealth and resources, Rockwell appears to be the only person who can save humanity from the crisis he created. The president, played by John Goodman, taps Digger to solve the problem.

Tom Cruise’s latest transformation

Beyond the premise, details of the movie remain unclear. Trailers focus primarily on the extreme transformation of Tom Cruise into Digger Rockwell. Sporting thin gray hair, a pot-belly, and a wrinkled, jowl-y face, Digger looks almost nothing like the 64-year-old action star. Digger also sounds unlike any of Cruise’s previous characters. He speaks as a highfaluting southerner who resembles Colonel Sanders and Foghorn Leghorn mixed with the Rich Texan character from The Simpsons.

While the transformation comes as a surprise, the director of Digger has experience with ambitious films. Alejandro G. Iñárritu directed the 2014 Michael Keaton movie Birdman, which earned him an Academy Award for Best Directing. Birdman received widespread attention for appearing to be filmed in one continuous take. While Digger does not use that storytelling device, the film shares a bombastic sense of comedy featuring broad and humorous characters.

Tom Cruise rarely stars in comedies, especially broadly silly ones like Digger. That rarity has generated strong anticipation, leading to comparisons with his previous comedic role as Les Grossman. Audiences will soon discover whether Digger becomes as memorable as Les Grossman, but early previews suggest Cruise has struck gold or, appropriately, oil.

Source: Polygon