About:

Nicole Mary Kidman AC (born June 20, 1967) is an acclaimed Australian and American actress and producer known for her versatile roles in film and television. Consistently among the world’s highest-paid actresses, she has won numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and six Golden Globe Awards. In 2024, she became the first Australian to receive the AFI Life Achievement Award.

Kidman began her career in Australia with the 1983 film BMX Bandits. Her breakthrough came with lead roles in Dead Calm and the miniseries Bangkok Hilton (both 1989). She gained international fame with Days of Thunder (1990) and further recognition with Far and Away (1992), To Die For (1995), Eyes Wide Shut (1999), The Others (2001), and Cold Mountain (2003). She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for The Hours (2002) and received additional Oscar nominations for Moulin Rouge! (2001), Rabbit Hole (2010), Lion (2016), and Being the Ricardos (2021). Kidman is also known for her roles in The Golden Compass (2007), Australia (2008), Paddington (2014), Aquaman (2018), and Bombshell (2019), as well as experimental films like Dogville (2003), Birth (2004), Margot at the Wedding (2007), The Paperboy (2012), Stoker (2013), The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017), Destroyer, and Boy Erased (both 2018).

In television, Kidman has starred in Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012), Top of the Lake: China Girl (2017), The Undoing (2020), Nine Perfect Strangers (2021), and Special Ops: Lioness (2023). Her performance in HBO’s Big Little Lies (2017–2019) earned her two Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Lead Actress and Outstanding Limited Series as an executive producer.

Kidman has been a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF since 1994 and UNIFEM since 2006. She was appointed Companion of the Order of Australia in 2006. Married to Tom Cruise from 1990 to 2001, she has been married to country music singer Keith Urban since 2006. In 2010, she founded the production company Blossom Films. She was included in Time’s 100 most influential people in 2004 and 2018, and The New York Times named her one of the greatest actors of the 21st century in 2020.

Early Life

Nicole Mary Kidman was born on June 20, 1967, in Honolulu, Hawaii, while her Australian parents were in the United States on student visas. Her mother, a nursing instructor and member of the Women’s Electoral Lobby, edited her father’s books; her father, Antony Kidman, was a biochemist, clinical psychologist, and author. She has a younger sister, Antonia Kidman, a journalist and TV presenter. Kidman holds dual citizenship in Australia and the United States and has English, Irish, and Scottish ancestry. Named “Hōkūlani,” meaning “heavenly star” in Hawaiian, she was inspired by a baby elephant at the Honolulu Zoo.

Kidman’s family moved to Washington, D.C., where her parents participated in anti-war protests before returning to Australia three years later. She grew up in Sydney, attending Lane Cove Public School and North Sydney Girls’ High School. Enrolled in ballet at age three, she discovered her passion for acting early on. Despite being shy and having a stutter as a child, she found solace in acting and attended the Phillip Street Theatre and the Australian Theatre for Young People, alongside Naomi Watts. Encouraged to pursue acting full-time, Kidman dropped out of high school.

Career

Early Work and Breakthrough (1983–1994)

Kidman made her film debut in 1983 at 16 with Bush Christmas. By the end of that year, she had a role in the TV series Five Mile Creek. After temporarily halting her career to support her mother during a breast cancer diagnosis in 1984, she gained recognition with films like BMX Bandits (1983) and Windrider (1986). Her performance in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm alongside Sam Neill was her breakthrough, earning international recognition.

Her next roles included the Australian miniseries Bangkok Hilton and Days of Thunder (1990), which marked her international breakout. She continued to gain acclaim with films like Flirting (1991), Billy Bathgate (1991), Far and Away (1992), Malice (1993), and My Life (1993).

Critical Acclaim and Worldwide Recognition (1995–2003)

In 1995, Kidman starred in Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for her role in To Die For, winning a Golden Globe. She appeared in The Portrait of a Lady (1996), The Peacemaker (1997), and Practical Magic (1998). In 1999, she reunited with Tom Cruise in Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut.

Kidman’s role in Moulin Rouge! (2001) earned her critical acclaim, a Golden Globe, and her first Oscar nomination. That same year, she starred in the psychological horror The Others and received several award nominations. Her portrayal of Virginia Woolf in The Hours (2002) earned her an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Golden Globe.

In 2003, Kidman appeared in Lars von Trier’s Dogville, The Human Stain, and Cold Mountain, receiving critical praise and award nominations for her performances.

Kidman’s career is marked by her versatility, critical acclaim, and dedication to both mainstream and experimental projects.