Already Headed for $245M Loss After Box Office Collapse

Estimates indicate that the environmental satire starring Tom Cruise could join the list of major box office disasters, including Cutthroat Island and The Amazing Digger. The ambitious environmental epic starring Tom Cruise and directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu is heading for worse financial results than previously thought, with reports indicating it will post the biggest loss among 845 million pounds. In cinema history, according to a Variety report, t…

Another, the ambitious environmental fable starring Tom Cruise and directed by Alejandro J. Iñárritu, is headed for a worse financial result than previously thought, with reports suggesting it will lose around $245m (£185m), making it one of the biggest disasters in cinema history.

According to a report in Variety , the second-weekend estimate in North America is $3.2 million, down 60% from its opening weekend figure of $8 million, meaning its current domestic gross is $14.4 million, for a global total of $35.3 million, and a projected final box office total of around $50 million worldwide.

Although exact figures are not available, Variety estimates that production costs are another $160 million to $180 million (well above the original budget of $125 million), with another $100 million spent on marketing the film. Another $15 million was potentially available for awards-season marketing, but that's likely to drop after the film's flop. With theaters keeping about half of the revenue from ticket sales, Variety estimates the film will need to make about $350 million to cover costs. (A spokesperson for Digger's studio, Warner Bros., says the break-even point is $300 million, suggesting a production cost of $150 million.)

Another $245 million loss puts it on par with legendary turkeys like Cutthroat Island ($222 million loss, adjusted for inflation), Mortal Engines ($224 million adjusted) and Marvel's ($205-$250 million adjusted).

The reaction to the film likely played a key role in its poor performance, and critical opinion has been sharply divided. In The Guardian, the film's lead critic Peter Bradshaw called it "a very shallow, labored, self-congratulatory satire" in a two-star review, while Guardian Australia's Deputy Culture Editor Sian Keane took a different view, calling it a "masterpiece". Warner Bros., whose last release before its takeover by David Ellison's Skydance, tried to wade into the fray with a post-release publicity campaign citing its negative announcements, but it appears to have had little effect.

So far, 2026 has been a disappointing year for Warner Bros. as it prepares for new ownership, with weak releases like Supergirl and The Bride! and co-chairs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdi due to leave before the takeover. This contrasts with the successful 2025, where releases such as A Minecraft Movie, Sinners and F1 propelled it to the second most successful studio behind Disney.

Elsewhere, Aaron Sorkin's The Social Reckoning also failed to meet expectations in its opening weekend, taking in $5.5 million at the North American box office and $9 million globally. The sequel to The Social Network, which stars Jeremy Strong as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Mikey Madison as whistleblower Frances Hagen, was completely outdone by Jessica Chastain's horror "The Other Mom," which led the North American box office with $27.5 million, part of a global cume of $45.2 million.