Tom Cruise revealed a teaser for his new film Excavator, and it left fans decidedly divided.
The trailer, released June 23, is just over three minutes long, but here’s the twist: The first two and a half minutes contain no footage from the film itself.
Instead, audiences are treated to a full montage of Cruise’s most iconic moments, Risky business, Some good men, Rain man, Mission: Impossible, War of the Worlds and more, before a voiceover from Mission: Impossible – The Final Judgment ” intones, “Everything you are, everything you’ve done… has come to this,” and the trailer finally cuts to a brief look at the new film.
So what is it Excavator actually, about?
The film follows Rockwell, the world’s most powerful oil tycoon, as he races to prove he is humanity’s savior before an ecological disaster of his own making destroys everything.
Cruise would be virtually unrecognizable in the role, sporting a Southern accent and thinning white hair. The film’s own tagline describes it as a “comedy of catastrophic proportions”.
Directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind Birdman And The Revenant, and written by Iñárritu alongside Alexander Dinelaris, Nicolás Giacobone and Sabina Berman, the film also stars Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg and Jesse Plemons.
Cruise shared the teaser about X with a message to fans.
“Over the past 46 years, I have had the privilege of working alongside countless talented artists and teams to create these characters, stories and films for all of you,” he wrote.
“I can’t wait to see you in theaters! DIGGER. Only in theaters in October.”
The response was mixed.
On Reddit, some viewers said they felt “duped” after assuming the throwback footage was heralding theatrical re-releases of Cruise’s classic films, while others speculated it was the opening salvo of an Oscar campaign.
This unusual marketing choice prompted one person to simply write: “That was such a strange marketing choice!” »
Others, however, were completely won over.
“Tom Cruise is his own cinematic universe,” one X user commented.
“Such a crazy filmography. One of the biggest movie stars of all time,” wrote another.
Director JJ Abrams also weighed in, after seeing the first images of the film.
“My dear friend is undoubtedly poised to wow us collectively with Digger. What an undeniably spectacular career. What a bold and wild next step. I’ve only seen a sneak peek of the film…can’t wait until October to see the sequel!” he wrote about X.
Excavator opens exclusively in IMAX on October 2, 2026.
