A still from "Digger" [Warner Bros. Korea]
A still from "Digger" [Warner Bros. Korea]

"Digger," the new film from Hollywood box-office stalwart Tom Cruise and two-time Academy Award-winning director Alejandro González Iñárritu, is falling well short of expectations. The film's surprise opening-weekend collapse has put it at risk of posting losses of up to $150 million to $200 million.

According to North American box office tallies, "Digger" opened at more than 3,300 theaters across North America over the weekend of Oct. 2 to 4, earning $8 million domestically and $12 million from 74 overseas markets for a global total of $20 million — good enough only for fifth place.

That marks the lowest opening-weekend performance for a Tom Cruise-led film in 19 years, since the low-budget political drama "Lions for Lambs" ($6.7 million) in 2007.

The North American box office crown for the same weekend went to "Verity," a thriller from Amazon MGM, which took in $32.6 million. The film has also struggled in South Korea, drawing a total of 40,399 moviegoers in its first five days of release.

According to local media reports, the film's official net production budget was between $125 million and $150 million, but costs ballooned during production to between $160 million and $180 million. With an additional $100 million in global marketing expenses, the break-even point is estimated at $300 million.

Warner Bros., the studio behind the film, has pushed back on those figures, maintaining that the production budget was in the $125 million to $150 million range. Variety reported that if the film's final theatrical revenue settles around $50 million, it will face losses of at least $150 million to $200 million.

The film is a dark comedy weaving together the story of an oil chaebol responsible for an environmental disaster and a satirical stage production mocking him. Critical and audience reception has been poor. The film received a "C+" grade from CinemaScore, the North American exit-poll survey, a score that signals audience rejection. In response, Warner Bros. launched an unusual advertising campaign that leaned into the mixed reviews, urging audiences to "Decide for yourself."

Even after the disappointing box office numbers came in, Cruise appeared unfazed. He posted photos from the film's set on social media, writing: "It was truly an unforgettable experience. I'm proud of what we created together."


shee@heraldcorp.com