“With the body, we’re communicating a story,” the actor says. “I want people to be immersed in a story.”

Tom Cruise reveals how he found his wild new look as a zany oil baron in Digger

“With the body, we’re communicating a story,” the actor says. “I want people to be immersed in a story.”

By Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel is a news writer at **. He began writing for EW in 2022.

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July 14, 2026 9:15 p.m. ET

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Tom Cruise in ‘Digger’. Credit:

- Tom Cruise reflected on his process for shaping his characters at a recent press event for *Digger*.

- The *Mission: Impossible* and *Top Gun* star said his wild new look in *Digger* came from “learning how to communicate” the character’s essence.

- Cruise also said that wearing false teeth helped him get into character.

Tom Cruise is reflecting on how he crafted the look and personality of his first new character in a decade.

The four-time Oscar nominee appeared at a press event at Warner Bros. in Burbank on Thursday, where he dug into the development of Digger Rockwell, the eccentric oil baron he plays under heavy old-age makeup in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s upcoming satire *Digger*, which marks Cruise’s first non-franchise film since *American Made* in 2017

“My process is: I’m absorbing, I’m absorbing, I’m absorbing,” Cruise said. “With the body, we’re communicating a story… I want people to be immersed in a story.”

Tom Cruise in ‘Digger’.

Warner Bros. Pictures

The *Top Gun* and *Mission: Impossible* star shared his priorities as he explores his roles. “When we’re looking for characters, we’re looking for humor, drama, certain constructs — how do we communicate this?” Cruise explained. “Whether it’s Les Grossman [from *Tropic Thunder*] or *Interview With the Vampire*, *Collateral*, or *Risky Business*, I’m always asking, ‘How do I communicate this?’ The physicality, the makeup, that is stuff that you find as you are learning how to communicate.”

Cruise went on to detail how the process of crafting a character is different in every one of his projects. “You really have to understand the tools — it’s not one-size-fits-all,” he said. “You have to find the communication, the lenses, the color of the makeup.”

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He enumerated all the details that he considered as he shaped Digger. “[The] color of the cowboy boots,” he said. “What are my shorts like? The sets, the color of the sets. They’re beautiful on every single level… You look at the taste of this man. It’s very special.”

Cruise said Digger’s false teeth also helped him get into character. “I put the teeth on, and it’s like, ‘Let’s f‑‑‑in’ go,’” he said as he imitated Digger’s crude catchphrase from the trailer while slipping into the character’s distinct Southern accent.

Tom Cruise at the ‘Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning’ premiere in London.

Jeff Spicer/Getty

He noted that every character and project has “its own musicality” as well as “its own vision” from its creators.

“If you start to feel the musicality of the character, it has a rhythm, and it’s not a rhythm like anything else,” Cruise said. “So the behavior of a character, the movement of a character, these are things that as we’re looking at the makeup side. As you’re developing, you’ve got to go, ‘Is this our tone? Is it drama? Is it comedy? Is it too much?’ You’re dialing it in.”

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According to Cruise, Iñárritu was instrumental in solidifying the tone of his performance. “Alejandro understands music, and that’s the universal language that we’re all finding,” the actor said, noting that he extensively prepares so he can maximize the creative process once he’s on set. “I think further, ‘How do I prepare so that we have time to discover that rhythm?’ Everything that I’m doing in terms of training or language or dance, I’m going, ‘How do I prepare for these moments?’ So I’m thinking about having that ability to be able to play a character like this.”

Cruise concluded, “It’s a lifelong journey of learning and learning and learning.”

*Digger* hits theaters Oct. 2.

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