Nicole Kidman shared an emotional memory about the moment she learned her mother, Janelle Anne Kidman, had died shortly before receiving best actress honors at the Venice Film Festival in 2024 for her role in Babygirl.
In a recent interview by Hoda Kotb during a History Talks panel in Philadelphia, the actress, 58, said that she had been preparing for the event when she received the devastating news. Rather than attending the event, she opted to return to her hotel room in Venice to come to terms with the information.
“I was about to go out on stage, and I found out that my mother had passed. I went right back to my room in Venice, was getting into bed, and I was completely devastated.”
At the time, Nicole Kidman recalled thinking:
“‘I’m not sure how I’m going to move forward or function now.’ She was so much a part of my existence.”
The Boy Erased actress also mentioned the attempt to leave Venice by night to see her family. She explained that she had gotten on the boat and tried to navigate through the canals to reach the airport.
However, she realized midway through the journey that she was unable to go further and returned to her room instead.
“I remember getting into a boat in the canal, literally at night, trying to find my way to the airport, and then turning around, going, ‘I can’t even do this.’ Then I went back to bed. And I was alone. My husband wasn’t there, my children weren’t there.”
Nicole Kidman reveals her mother discouraged her from quitting her career
The actor thought about the contradiction between external achievements and internal failures. Winning an award must have brought joy to her, but this moment was one of deep suffering for her.
“I was there to win an award, which should’ve been a beautiful thing. That there is the contrast of life.”
In the interview, Nicole Kidman concluded that the “devastating” experience helped her become resilient and realize she “could survive pretty much anything,” and she said this because of how resilient her mother was.
“She told me: don’t ever let anyone break your spirit. She came from an era where she wasn’t given the career advice she would’ve loved. She raised us, supported my father, helped him get his PhD. She basically gave to her family and didn’t have the career that she would’ve loved to have had.”
The Bombshell actress continued to praise her “exceptionally smart” mother, who was a nursing instructor and a member of the Australian feminist group, Women’s Electoral Lobby.
Nicole Kidman further revealed that it was Janelle Anne who discouraged her from quitting Hollywood when the actress was in her 40s, and projects were drying up.
“She was like, ‘I think you need to still keep your toe in the water. I wouldn’t completely give up.’ You’ve been doing this since you were little.’ And thank God she said that.”
Edited by Gladys Altamarino