Anne Hathaway is the latest in a growing number of stars to support Tom Cruise’s box office bomb

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Anne Hathaway has joined a growing chorus of stars praising Tom Cruise’s controversial new film, Excavatorafter blowing up at the box office during its opening weekend.

The dark comedy, written and directed by Alejandro Iñárritu, stars Cruise as a powerful oil tycoon whose drilling operations trigger a catastrophic environmental disaster.

The film was widely panned by critics – something the distributors themselves mocked when promoting the film – and only grossed $8 million at the box office in its opening weekend, against a budget of $160 million.

However, in a social media campaign reminiscent of Andrea Riseborough’s controversial campaign for the 2023 Oscars, a number of stars have spoken out in support of Cruise’s film.

Here are the celebrities who are trying to generate a wave of positive word of mouth around a film that is struggling to convince critics and the public.

Anne Hathaway

“I loved this brilliant film. It’s smart, trippy, aggressive, funny and ambitious,” Hathaway wrote on the film review platform Letterboxd. “It’s worth taking the time to see and decide for yourself what you think. For me? 10/10.”

Mandy Patinkin

In an expansive video shared on social media, The Princess Bride star called Excavator an “instant classic” and said it was “one of the greatest pieces of film I’ve ever seen in my entire life”.

“It’s an incredible piece of work. It puts the heart and soul back into cinema. Everything we all love about cinema is that. Please, please run! Don’t walk, don’t run, and don’t see this film,” he continued.

In the caption of his post, Patinkin directly addressed the film’s poor reception, writing, “This critically panned film is beyond belief. Anyone who drags this piece through the mud should have a brain scan or watch it again because they must have not been paying attention. This is one of the most daring, original and provocative works of art I have seen and shout out to everyone who put their hands on it. I would have given my right arm to be an extra in this film. movie (I’m right-handed).

“This profession, like many other things these days, seems in peril. The systems at play encourage mass appeal above all else. Excavator is a battle cry for art, for enlightenment, for demanding real attention from your audience, and for the miracle of having a point of view. To repeatedly horrify, delight, savagely surprise and inspire us to fight for our world before it’s too late is an incredible accomplishment. Don’t listen to Rotten Tomatoes. Find a real person who saw this movie. Listen to them. Tomaaato tomato! F*** this stupid percentage bullshit. It’s so stupid. Go see this movie.

Glen Powell

Powell, who starred alongside Cruise in Top Gun: Maverickappeared alongside his former co-star in Excavatorin Los Angeles on October 1.

He later took to Instagram to praise the film, writing: “DIGGER!! Rarely are we taken on a ride like this in the theater. Visionary spectacle, fearless performances and the experience of two of the greats, Tom Cruise and Alejandro Iñárritu, committing fiercely and unapologetically to their vision. Pure cinematic joy. This one (that) will stand the test of time.”

Jane Fonda

“My friends and I enjoyed Excavator and say hello to Tom Cruise and Alejandro Iñárritu,” Fonda shared on Instagram on Thursday.

She continued: “The film allows us to witness another side of Tom Cruise’s courage. It was a big and courageous risk for him to take on this role and he was very good and very courageous in this role. He pulled out all the stops, owning the role 100%. So did John Goodman, Riz Ahmed and Jesse Plemmons.

“The film finds an original and, yes, risky way to wake us up to the climate crisis and I hope and pray that word of mouth will bring people to this film as it is very creative and closer to the truth than any film of its type made to date. Hugs, kisses and bravissimo to everyone involved.”

Ron Howard

Apollo 13 Director Howard responded to Cruise on

Guillermo del Toro

The shape of water the director defended Excavator on Excavatorand the laughs that are there will still be there when it hits HBO Max.

Del Toro responded: “A thoroughly mean-spirited title. Like it or not. And, yes, I do. The film offers scale, ambition and scope at the theatrical screen level. Bold, daring and complexly cinematic. Definitely a theatrical experience.”

Alfonso Cuarón

Rounding out the triumvirate of Mexican filmmakers, Alfonso Cuarón shared a series of scathing reviews of films that went on to widespread acclaim, including Blade Runner, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Metropolis And The shiny.