Influencers' Extreme Praise for 'Digger' Contrasts With Box Office Flop
Online personalities lauded the film as a masterpiece and predicted Oscar wins for Tom Cruise, even as 'Digger' received critical scorn and underperformed financially.
Despite a critical drubbing and a weak box office performance, the film "Digger" has been met with effusive praise from online influencers, with some calling it a "masterpiece" and predicting Academy Award wins for its star, Tom Cruise.
Following the film's release, numerous social media personalities shared hyperbolic reactions. One influencer documented himself on Instagram, appearing to hyperventilate with excitement after watching "Digger," questioning what he had just witnessed and declaring the movie "beyond a masterpiece."
Hosts of the online movie show "Raiders of the Lost Podcast," which has over 578,000 followers on TikTok and featured Tom Cruise as a guest, posted a video after an advanced screening. One host stated, "I think 'Digger' will go down as probably the most important film of the 21st century. Not being hyperbolic. [And] Tom will finally win his first Oscar for acting." The host further described the film as "mind-blowing" and a testament to director Alejandro González Iñárritu's "wizardry," calling it "wholly unique" and on a "different stratosphere" in terms of production design, acting, stunts, and wardrobe.
Other influencer reactions echoed similar sentiments. Posts included claims such as, "Tom Cruise should be nominated for an Oscar… he’s that damn great in this, it’s one of the best performances of his career," and "Tom Cruise did a phenomenal job… I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets an award for this."
These declarations often included the word "masterpiece," noted that the poster had just left the theater, and asserted Cruise's imminent Oscar nomination. However, a host from the Academy Awards podcast, "Mike, Mike, and Oscar," questioned the strategy behind the film's promotional push. He suggested that the "purposeful muddying of the waters" by Warner Bros. might not be effective, particularly when professional critics pan the film while online influencers declare it a monumental success.
He pointed out the discrepancy: "What good is this doing the studios where the critics see the movie — the paid professionals — and they pan it. But if you go online and look up the movie itself, well it’s the ‘greatest thing you’ve ever seen.’" He added that based on his analysis of Academy Award history, a film that bombs this badly at the box office has not typically yielded an Oscar acting winner.
Earlier, Warner Bros. hosted a controlled event on their lot to unveil the film's trailer, inviting numerous influencers to view the preview and take photos with Cruise. The studio provided the pictures, and phones were reportedly not permitted.
"Digger" opened to $8 million, a figure that stands in stark contrast to the enthusiastic online commentary. One influencer commented that "Digger" "brings everyone together," a sentiment that has been called into question by the film's commercial and critical reception.