The Prince and Princess of Wales faces online backlash after attending the London premiere of Tom Cruise's Digger, with some critics questioning the timing and their decision to appear alongside the actor.
The royal couple attended the Royal Film Performance at ODEON Luxe Leicester Square on Tuesday, 22 September, where they met Cruise and director Alejandro González Iñárritu. Their appearance marked their first joint film premiere since Top Gun: Maverick in 2022, but the event was met with criticism online, including one commenter who described them as 'powerful losers supporting Tom'.
A Royal Film Premiere With a Charitable Cause
The premiere served as this year's Royal Film Performance in support of The Film and TV Charity, which provides financial and practical support to people working behind the scenes in the UK's film, television and cinema industries.
William wore a black velvet suit jacket, while Kate wore a floor-length purple gown with a piece reported to be the Queen Mother's Amethyst Sautoir Necklace, originally a gift from Queen Alexandra to Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon on her wedding day in 1923. The couple greeted members of the cast and creative team at the event, including Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg and Jesse Plemons. They also spoke with Cruise and González Iñárritu during the evening.
Complicated Day for a Premiere
Despite the charitable purpose of the event, the royal appearance came on the same day William's uncle, Earl Charles Spencer, published Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, a book reportedly containing allegations about King Charles. TalkTV host Mark Dolan told the Daily Expresso podcast that his own 'royal sources' described William as 'firmly on his father's side' amid the fallout, though William himself has made no public comment on the book.
Earlier that day, William had made a lower-key public appearance, serving popcorn at a community cinema in Acton, where he declined to answer a shouted question about his uncle's book. The contrast between that quiet morning appearance and the evening's red carpet glamour has fuelled some of the online criticism of the day.
Associations With Cruise
A widely upvoted post on Reddit's r/Fauxmoi opened with the line: 'So many powerful losers supporting Tom recently.' The post, and much of the discussion beneath it, reflects long-standing criticism of Cruise's public associations, tied in part to his prominent and decades-long affiliation with the Church of Scientology, a connection that has drawn scrutiny from journalists and former members for years, separate from anything specific to this premiere.
Comment
by u/Relevant-Peach3997 from discussion
in Fauxmoi
One reply to the post suggested the scrutiny wouldn't stop with William and Kate, predicting other celebrities who've recently supported Cruise publicly would face similar criticism next.
A New Film Already Dividing Audiences
The premiere's rocky reception wasn't confined to commentary about the guest list. Digger itself has had a divisive start. Early reactions from press screenings ranged from praise for Tom Cruise's performance, with IndieWire's Jim Hemphill calling it 'one of the most visually inventive' studio films in years, to sharper criticism from other critics, including one who described it as 'kind of generally unpleasant'.
The film follows Digger Rockwell, a wealthy oil tycoon whose drilling operation in Greenland triggers a methane release and knocks loose a glacial ice shelf. Warner Bros. Pictures is distributing the film, which stars Cruise, now 64 and a four-time Oscar nominee, in what SlashFilm called the biggest risk of his career since 1999's Magnolia.
For now, the criticism of William and Kate's attendance appears concentrated in online spaces rather than mainstream royal coverage, most of which has focused on Kate's necklace and the couple's reunion with Cruise rather than the wider controversy.
