‘I literally fell off my chair’: Two words from Tom Cruise left his Digger co-star on the floor

Exclusive: There are so many Oscar winners and Oscar nominees among the cast of the new movie Digger, but one in particular was floored by Tom Cruise – literally.

Anatomy of a Fall star Sandra Hüller tells nine.com.au she’s embarrassed by her encounter with the Hollywood legend, but co-star Riz Ahmed insists it was “a very cute story”.

Cruise plays Texan oil tycoon Digger Rockwell in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s high stakes “comedy disaster movie”, with padding and prosthetics making him almost unrecognisable.

Ahmed tells nine.com.au Cruise would stay in his “insane kind of get up” in between takes, and come over to the raft of actors and “make small talk”.

But there was one incident in particular that caught Hüller by surprise.

“It was really embarrassing – I literally fell off the chair,” she tells nine.com.au

“It was kind of a chair with these little rollers underneath, and I didn’t see it coming.

Unprepared to suddenly see the actual, un-disguised Tom Cruise standing right in front of her, Hüller startled, lost her footing on a rolling chair, and ended up on the floor.

“He just took off the makeup because he was not in the shot, but he wanted to, of course, play the scene.”

When he turned around without his face-altering makeup and casually said, “It’s me,” Hüller was so startled by the sudden appearance of the actual Hollywood icon that she slipped right off her rolling office chair.

“I just literally fell off, and I’m still dying thinking about it,” she recalls.

The Oscar nominee, who plays Digger Rockwell’s half sister Emma joked that the duo “went on a holiday for three weeks” together to work on their sibling energy, before saying that they got to know each other through the rehearsal process.

And it wasn’t just Hüller who was bowled over – Cruise seemed to exceed the expectations all of his co-stars, including that of fellow Hollywood stalwart John Goodman.

Goodman, who is best known to audiences for his role in the ’90s sitcom Roseanne, worked with Cruise for the first time in their more than 30 years in the industry together.

But it wasn’t quite their first meeting.

“I’d heard a lot about him,” Goodman tells nine.com.au.

“For one thing, we met in, let’s see … 1990. We were at a party – Bruce Willis used to have a place in Malibu – and he, every Sunday, invited a bunch of people over.

“So my new wife and I went over, and I met Tom for about three seconds, and he remembered it when we were talking last year, he remembered it. So, that that was pretty impressive.

“But everything I heard about him is not enough – he’s incredible, he’s a wonderful man.”

Australian actress Sophie Wilde felt the same too, despite scenes in the movie berating Cruise’s character and putting him in his place.

“Tom is the greatest scene partner in the world, and he just brings such joy to the set and such a sense of play, that I think you just feel like you’re having fun,” Wilde tells nine.com.au.

“And, it’s kind of fun to scream at each other.”

So, was screaming at the Mission Impossible and Top Gun star intimidating for the Logie-award winner? Not really, the Wilde admits.

“He’s an amazing actor to work against, and it’s so incredible when you’re working with an actor of that calibre, and they’re just giving you everything, and it inspires you to try and give everything that you can as well,” she says.

Christmas cake ‘controversy’

One thing that lead to a bit of controversy on set is who got to try and who missed out on Cruise’s famous Coconut Christmas Cake.

The actor has become well-known for his generous gift giving over the years.

His former War of the Worlds co-star Dakota Fanning gets a pair of expensive shoes every year for her birthday.

Meanwhile, a long list of his other former co-stars and famous friends get a $190 white chocolate and coconut bunt cake every Christmas.

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'I made the famous Tom Cruise Christmas Cake'

With Digger shooting over the Christmas period, the treat from California’s Doan’s Bakery made its way to the London set but not everyone was there that day.

“Sandra feels so bad about missing out on this cake,” Ahmed tells nine.com.au

The Oscar winner cheekily tells the German actress it wasn’t any good before saying the exact opposite on camera.

“I have things to look forward to now,” Hüller jibes in return with a laugh.

Wilde is also joining her on the waitlist to taste the delicacy, revealing she was “devo” to miss out.

“He did bring it to set, but it was the day I wasn’t on set but I know everyone else got to try the coconut cake,” she tells nine.com.au.

“So I was really quite devo, I wish I was on set that day ... apparently it tastes so good. I’m desperate to try it.”

Cancel culture in the spotlight

The film’s plot is almost indescribable. Without giving away spoilers, perception versus reality, climate change and cancel culture all feature thematically.

Coming out amid one of the biggest examples in recent history of celebrity cancel culture with Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour saga, the theme is made even more poignant.

Goodman tells nine.com.au he admires other celebrities who use their platform to take a stand and speak truth to power, but he’s too worried to step into that light.

“I’ve got a lot of axes to grind, but so does somebody else,” he says.

“Just because I have a job where people know who I am, doesn’t mean I have to abuse that.

“There’s people who do use it well, like Mark Ruffalo and Susan Sarandon – they’re great activists, and at personal risk to themselves.

“I worry that I will bore people or get the facts wrong.”

But his Digger co-star Michael Stuhlbarg, who plays the Vice President to Goodman’s President Compson, takes a slightly different view as he tries to balance saying what he really thinks with being publicly crucified.

“We find ourselves in a public position, which, to be honest with you, I never really considered when I got into doing this,” Stuhlbarg tells nine.com.au.

“I do have opinions, and sometimes those opinions come out. I tend to be more thoughtful about them.”

But the Call Me By You Name star says, like in the movie, there are moments in history where speaking up is important.

“In times of alarm, in times of emergency, in times where it’s more important that we help each other out, it is important for our voices to be heard,” Stuhlbarg adds.

“And I salute those who are brave enough to speak when it needs to be heard.”

Digger is in cinemas across Australia from October 1.