So much for the royal seal of approval. Tom Cruise rolled out Digger in London last week with Prince William and Kate Middleton on the red carpet, plenty of royal sparkle and enough friendly photos to suggest Warner Bros. had secured itself a very glamorous promotional boost. Cruise has since praised the couple, calling William’s decision to marry Kate a “smart choice” and gushing about their warmth and charisma.  

Unfortunately, critics appear considerably less enchanted by the movie.

Digger debuted at just 41% on Rotten Tomatoes before climbing as more reviews arrived. At the time of writing, it sits at 52% from 108 reviews, making it Alejandro González Iñárritu’s lowest-rated feature on the site. It is also Cruise’s weakest critical reception in nearly a decade, since 2017’s The Mummy.

The reviews have been brutal. Early reactions included “baffling” and “unpleasant,” while Variety described Cruise’s performance as deliberately over-the-top in a satire about an ageing Texas oil tycoon whose own business practices help unleash an environmental catastrophe.

Warner Bros. has now taken the unusual approach of leaning into the abuse. A new advertisement actually includes the negative reactions before telling audiences to “decide for yourself.” When your marketing campaign has reached please ignore the reviews and form your own opinion, things may not be going entirely according to plan.  

The Kate Effect Has Entered the Chat

Naturally, none of this is actually Kate Middleton’s fault. She did not direct Digger, write it or put Tom Cruise in prosthetic jowls.

But we reserve the right to enjoy the timing. Prince William and Kate Middleton attended the September 22 world premiere in Leicester Square, where Kate arrived in Jenny Packham and historic royal jewellery while Cruise welcomed his very famous royal friends. Days later, the film was fighting off dreadful reviews and weakening box-office expectations.  

The “Kate Effect” strikes again. Perhaps audiences did not receive the memo about Britain’s supposedly irresistible royal couple.

Earlier tracking had Digger opening between $20 million and $30 million domestically. Boxoffice Pro later cut that forecast to $10 million to $15 million, showing how sharply expectations had fallen before release.

With a reported production budget of roughly $125 million to $130 million, Digger now faces a much harder path to profitability if the weaker box-office forecasts hold. And perhaps the problem is simpler than all the royal glamour and box-office mathematics.

A dark comedy about an ageing oil tycoon whose actions help unleash a catastrophe before he tries to cast himself as humanity’s saviour may simply feel a little too much like turning on the news. Still, Tom has William and Kate in his corner. Perhaps all that royal star power can finally translate into ticket sales.

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