The trailer for Alejandro G Iñárritu’s Tom Cruise-starrer Digger was released recently. Even as Tom stole the show in it while looking unrecognisable, one couldn’t help but notice Riz Ahmed keeping up with him. Turns out, while the British actor eventually landed the role, there were Indian actors who almost got the part.
Indian actors who almost landed the Digger role
After the trailer of Digger dropped, Bollywood actor-comedian Vir Das, in a now-deleted X (formerly Twitter) post, revealed that he had auditioned for the film. He wrote, “Gave two auditions for this. They went with Riz Ahmed. Was severely crestfallen, but that’s life. This script is insanity, in such a good way.” Even though the actor deleted his post, screenshots of it made the rounds on social media, including Reddit.
Even as many argued whether Vir or Riz would be more apt for the role, some remembered that Malayalam star Fahadh Faasil had also once spoken about dropping out of Alejandro’s film due to accent and relocation issues. In August 2025, he told Cue Studio he was in talks for a role in the filmmaker’s next. Although he wasn’t rejected for the role, he explained why it didn’t pan out for him.
“It was not like he rejected me, but it was the accent that he was concerned about. To perfect the accent, I was told to go to the US and stay there for three or four months. But they weren’t ready to pay for that. That’s why I skipped it. Otherwise, I would have gone running. The commercial aspects of it wouldn’t have worked out. I didn’t feel that kind of fire for it to do so much for my accent,” said Fahadh. The Malayalam actor also stated that he spoke to Alejandro over a video call and that the filmmaker might have realised he isn’t a good fit for the role.
About Digger
Digger is a satirical comedy film directed by Alejandro G Iñárritu, who co-wrote it with Sabina Berman, Alexander Dinelaris Jr., and Nicolás Giacobone. This is the Mexican filmmaker’s first English film since The Revenant (2015).
Digger stars Tom Cruise, Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Jesse Plemons. Scheduled for release on October 2, it tells the story of a wealthy oil tycoon, Digger Rockwell, played by Tom, who invariably brings disaster to the world. He rushes against time to prove he’s humanity’s saviour before it’s too late.