Nicole Kidman
Biography
Elegant
redhead Nicole Kidman, known as one of Hollywood's top Australian
imports, was actually born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Anthony (a biochemist
and clinical psychologist) and Janelle (a nursing instructor) Kidman.
The family moved almost immediately to Washington, D.C., where Nicole's
father pursued his research on breast cancer, then, three years
later, made the pilgrimage to her parents' native Sydney. Young
Nicole's first love was ballet, but she eventually took up mime
and drama as well (her first stage role was a bleating sheep in
an elementary school Christmas pageant). In her adolescent years,
acting edged out the other arts and became a kind of refuge--as
her classmates sought out fun in the sun, the fair-skinned Kidman
retreated to dark rehearsal halls to practice her craft.
She worked
regularly at the Philip Street Theater, where she once received
a personal letter of praise and encouragement from audience member
Jane Campion (then a film student). Kidman eventually dropped out
of high school to pursue acting full-time. She broke into movies
at age 16, landing a role in the Australian holiday favorite Bush
Christmas (1983).That appearance touched off a flurry of film and
TV offers, including a lead in BMX Bandits (1983) and a turn as
a schoolgirl-turned-protester in the miniseries "Vietnam"
(1986) (mini) (for which she won her first Australian Film Institute
Award). With the help of an American agent, she eventually made
her US debut opposite Sam Neill in the at-sea thriller Dead Calm
(1989). Kidman's next casting coup scored her more than exposure.
While starring as Tom Cruise's doctor/love interest in the racetrack
romance Days of Thunder (1990), she won over the Hollywood hunk
hook, line, and sinker. After a whirlwind courtship (and decent
box office returns), the couple wed on December 24, 1990. Determined
not to let her new marital status overshadow her fledgling career,
the actress pressed on.
She appeared
as a catty high school senior in the Australian film Flirting (1991),
then as Dustin Hoffman's moll in the gangster flick Billy Bathgate
(1991). She reunited with Cruise for Far and Away (1992), the story
of young Irish lovers who flee to America in the late 1800s, and
starred opposite Michael Keaton in the tear-tugger My Life (1993).
Despite her steady employment, critics and moviegoers still hadn't
quite warmed to Kidman as a leading lady. She tried to spice up
her image by seducing Val Kilmer in Batman Forever (1995), but achieved
her real breakthrough with Gus Van Sant's To Die for (1995). As
a fame-crazed housewife determined to eliminate any obstacle in
her path, Kidman proved that she had an impressive range and deadly
comic timing.
She took
home a Golden Globe and several critics' awards for the performance.
In 1996, Kidman stepped into a corset to work with her countrywoman
and onetime admirer, Jane Campion, on the adaptation of Henry James's
Portrait of a Lady, The (1996). A few months later, she tore across
the screen as a nuclear weapons expert in Peacemaker, The (1997),
adding "action star" to her professional repertoire. She
and Cruise then disappeared into a notoriously long, secretive shoot
for Stanley Kubrick's sexual thriller Eyes Wide Shut (1999). The
couple's on-screen shenanigans prompted an increase in public speculation
about their sex life (rumors had long been circulating that their
marriage was a cover-up for Cruise's homosexuality); tired of denying
tabloid attacks, they successfully sued _The Star_ for a story alleging
that they needed a sex therapist to coach them through love scenes.
Family life has always been a priority for Kidman.
Born
to social activists (mom was a feminist, dad a labor advocate),
Nicole and her little sister, Antonia, discussed current events
around the dinner table and participated in their parents' campaigns
by passing out pamphlets on street corners. When her mother was
diagnosed with breast cancer, 17-year-old Nicole stopped working
and took a massage course so that she could provide physical therapy
(her mom eventually beat the cancer). She and Cruise adopted two
children: Isabella Jane (born in 1993) and Connor Antony (born 1995).
Despite their rock-solid image, the couple announced in early 2001
that they were separating due to career conflicts.
Nicole Kidman Filmography
Untitled Alexander the
Great Project (2006)--Olympias
American Darlings (2005)
Emma's War (2005)
Producers, The (2005)--Ulla
Bewitched (2005)--Isabel Bigelow/Samantha Stephens
Interpreter, The (2005)--Silvia Broome
Birth (2004)--Anna
Stepford Wives, The (2004)--Joanna Eberhard
Cold Mountain (2003)--Ada Monroe
Human Stain, The (2003)--Faunia Farley
Dogville (2003)--Grace Margaret Mulligan
Hours, The (2002)--Virginia Woolf
Panic Room (2002) (voice) (uncredited)--Stephen's Girlfriend on
the Phone
Birthday Girl (2001)--Sophia
Others, The (2001)--Grace Stewart
Moulin Rouge! (2001)--Satine
Eyes Wide Shut (1999)--Alice Harford
Practical Magic (1998)--Gillian 'Gilly-Bean' Owens
The Peacemaker (1997)--Julia Kelly
The Portrait of a Lady (1996)--Isabel Archer
The Leading Man (1996)--Academy Awards Presenter
To Die for (1995)--Suzanne Stone Maretto
Batman Forever (1995)-- Dr. Chase Meridian
My Life (1993)--Gail Jones
Malice (1993)--Tracy Kennsinger
Far and Away (1992)--Shannon Christie
Billy Bathgate (1991)--Drew Preston
Flirting (1991)--Nicola Radcliffe
Days of Thunder (1990)--Dr. Claire Lewicki
"Bangkok Hilton" (1989) (mini) TV Series--Katrina Stanton
Dead Calm (1989)--Rae Ingram
Emerald City (1988)--Helen, Mike McCord's Girlfriend
Un'Australiana a Roma (1987) (TV)--Jill
The Bit Part(1987)--Mary McAllister
Room to Move (1987) (TV)--Carol Trig
"Vietnam" (1986) (mini) TV Series--Megan Goddard
Watch the Shadows Dance (1986)--Amy Gabriel
Windrider (1986)--Jade
Archer's Adventure (1985)--Catherine
Wills & Burke (1985)--Julia Matthews
"Five Mile Creek" (1984) TV Series--Annie
Matthew and Son (1984) (TV)--Bridget Elliot
BMX Bandits (1983)--Judy
Bush Christmas (1983)--Helen
Chase Through the Night (1983) (TV)--Petra |
