Nicole Kidman Picks Her Five Most Meaningful Films

Nicole Kidman’s filmography is nothing if not eclectic. With nearly a hundred roles to her name, she’s traversed everything from the outlandish spectacle of superhero blockbusters to the quietly unsettling corners of psychological drama. Her recent turn in Babygirl, opposite Harris Dickinson, saw her embody a CEO whose life unravels in the throes of a risky relationship with a much younger colleague. The performance, as Kidman herself described, was a “quest to examine humanity”, demanding a level of candour that left little room for artifice. Whether she’s lingering over a seemingly innocuous glass of milk or navigating the emotional wreckage of a crumbling summer retreat, Kidman’s approach is always to probe beneath the surface, searching for the deeper meaning in every gesture.

This commitment to exploring the human condition has been a through-line in her career. She’s consistently gravitated towards scripts that dissect the intricacies of emotion, often zeroing in on a single facet and turning it over with forensic attention. When asked which of her own films she holds closest, Kidman was momentarily taken aback.

“Wow,”

she laughed, before offering her answer with characteristic thoughtfulness.

Back-to-Back Triumphs

Kidman pointed to a trio of films that, remarkably, she made in quick succession.

“Probably Moulin Rouge! and The Others and The Hours. And it’s so weird because I did all of them back to back,”

she reflected. This run, at the dawn of the 2000s, marked a turning point in her career, propelling her into the upper echelons of the industry. It’s a bit like hitting a perfect streak on a favourite album—each film distinct, yet together forming a defining chapter.

Each of these works offered something different: the exuberant, tragic romance of Moulin Rouge!; the chilling, atmospheric tension of The Others; and the layered, time-spanning narrative of The Hours. For Kidman, these weren’t just roles—they were opportunities to inhabit characters wrestling with love, loss, and identity, all while the world watched her transformation from rising star to household name.

Confronting Grief and Loss

Stepping outside that early-2000s purple patch, Kidman singled out another project that struck a particularly personal chord.

“Probably Rabbit Hole because that says so much about grief,”

she said. In this 2010 drama, she played Becca Corbett, a mother navigating the aftermath of her son’s accidental death. The film is unflinching in its portrayal of sorrow, tracing the unpredictable paths people take as they try to make sense of the unimaginable. Kidman’s performance is raw, at times almost painfully so, as she captures the disorienting, isolating nature of loss.

Reflecting on her choices, she noted,

“That seems to be something that I’ve circled around; I try to circle around subjects and for some reason, loss and grief, I circle around it in many different forms.”

It’s a theme that recurs throughout her work, whether in overt tragedies or more subtle explorations of absence and longing.

Unusual Collaborations and Unsettling Stories

For her fifth pick, Kidman turned to a film that’s perhaps less celebrated but no less significant in her eyes.

“I also loved working with Jonathan Glazer in Birth. Whether the film actually works as a whole, I don’t know, but I think there are some really great moments in that film, and I think he’s got greatness in him.”

Birth is a strange, haunting piece: Kidman’s character, widowed by a sudden heart attack, is confronted by a ten-year-old boy who claims to be her late husband reincarnated. The film’s premise is as unsettling as it sounds, and Kidman’s performance is marked by a kind of quiet intensity, as she navigates the blurred lines between belief and delusion.

Across these five films, Kidman’s choices reveal a fascination with the messier aspects of being human—grief, desire, uncertainty, and the search for meaning. It’s a body of work that resists easy categorisation, much like the actor herself.