What the Hell Happened to Nicole Kidman?

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http://lebeauleblog.com/2013/04/20/what-the-hell-happened-to-nicole-kidman/

During the 1990′s, Kidman was one half of Hollywood’s biggest power
couple. During that time, she became one of the most sought-after
actresses in Hollywood. Even after her divorce from Tom Cruise,
Kidman’s career continued to soar. She starred in big movies, was a
darling of critics and finally won an Academy Award in 2002. These
days, Kidman is still a sought-after actress. She can still be
counted on to rack up nominations come awards time. But her career
has cooled. The movies are smaller. Her spotlight has dimmed.

What the hell happened?

Kidman was born to Australian parents who were living in Hawaii. That
made her eligible for dual citizenship in Australia and the US.
Kidman’s family returned to Australia when she was four. In 1983, at
the age of 15, Kidman started acting in Australian film and
television. Her first film was a remake of an Australian holiday
favorite, Bush Christmas. (Between being born in Hawaii and starring
in Bush Christmas, I am trying really hard not to make any jokes about
recent presidents.)

That year, Kidman became a regular on the Australian TV show, Five
Mile Creek. She also appeared in BMX Bandits (pictured above). To
get the part, Kidman lied about being able to ride BMX bikes. During
filming, she sprained an ankle. No female stunt double could be
found, so Kidman was doubled by a man.

Kidman continued working in Australian film and television throughout
the 80s. In 1989, Kidman starred opposite Sam Neill and Billy Zane in
Phillip Noyce’s nautical thriller, Dead Calm.

Kidman and Neill play a couple who go out to sea to after the death of
their son. Their getaway is interrupted when they come upon a sinking
boat. They rescue the sole survivor played by Zane. He repays their
kindness by terrorizing them at sea.

Dead Calm received almost universally positive reviews. It was a hit
in Australia and crossed over into the US.

It is impossible to discuss Kidman’s Hollywood career without talking
about her relationship with Tom Cruise. Cruise was married to actress
Mimi Rogers. Rogers brought Cruise into Scientology. The couple
split in 1990. Like all of Cruise’s three divorces, the details were
shrouded in privacy. Years later, Rogers offered her take:

“Tom was seriously thinking of becoming a monk. At least for that
period of time, it looked as though marriage wouldn’t fit into his
overall spiritual need. And he thought he had to be celibate to
maintain the purity of his instrument. Therefore it became obvious we
had to split.”

Marty Rathbun, author of the book, Going Clear, told a different
story. According to the book, church-leader David Miscavige saw
Cruise as a rock star who could be the public face of Scientology.
Anything Cruise wanted, Cruise got. And Cruise wanted the 21-year-old
Kidman. According to Marty Rathbun, former second-in-command and now
a vocal critic of Scientology, he was sent to Rogers’ home with
divorce papers and told her: ‘ “This is the right thing to do for Tom,
because he is going to do lots of good for Scientology.” That was the
end of Mimi Rogers.’

Kidman was a Catholic who reportedly tolerated Cruise’s involvement in
Scientology without embracing it. Her father was a clinical
psychologist which worried some Scientologists given their views on
psychology. But Miscavige couldn’t tell Cruise “no”. They started a
file on Kidman while they were introducing her to Cruise.

Cruise cast Kidman in his 1990 racing drama, Days of Thunder and the
co-stars began dating.

Days of Thunder was directed by Tony Scott who had directed Cruise in
his star-making role in Top Gun. Critics noted the similarities
between the two movies. They referred to Days of Thunder as “Top Gun
on wheels”.

The production was extremely difficult. Producers Don Simpson and
Jerry Bruckheimer fought with Scott about everything. Even screen-
writer Robert Towne got in on the action. The movie fell three months
behind schedule.

It was released to mixed reviews, but it was a hit at the box office.

In 1990, Kidman appeared in Flirting, an Australian coming of age film
which also featured early performances by Thandie Newton and Naomi
Watts.

Flirting received positive reviews. Roger Ebert named it one of the
10 best films of the year. It was successful in relation to its
budget at the box office both in Australia and in the US.

Later that year, Kidman returned to mainstream Hollywood movies in the
crime drama, Billy Bathgate.

Dustin Hoffman starred as gangster, Dutch Schultz. Bruce Willis
appeared in a supporting role as Dutch’s rival. Kidman played his
girl friend. While Dutch is on trial, he tasks his protegé with
keeping an eye on Kidman which he does very effectively. Even when
she is bathing naked in a pond. Hey, he was just doing what his boss
asked him to do!

The movie got mixed to negative reviews and flopped at the box
office. Amazingly, Kidman was nominated for a Golden Globe.
Apparently, Hoffman’s protegé wasn’t the only one who enjoyed watching
here bathe.

In 1992, Kidman co-starred with her husband in Ron Howard’s romantic
drama, Far and Away.

Cruise and Kidman played Irish immigrants in the 1890′s. They drink,
they fight, Kidman has curls like Merida in Brave and eventually they
fall in love. The high point of the movie is the Land Rush of 1893.

Reviews were mixed and the film was a disappointment in the US
(relative to its budget and Cruise’s usual grosses). It fared well
overseas which resulted in the movie making a profit.

In 1993, Kidman appeared opposite Alec Baldwin and Bill Pullman in
the over-the-top thriller, Malice.

Oh man, is Malice ever ridiculous? It’s more than ridiculous, it’s
ridonculous. Pullman and Kidman played a married couple. So that
right there strains credibility. Baldwin played a maniacal doctor who
utters the famous line, “You ask me if I have a God complex. Let me
tell you something. I am God.” Not surprisingly, Baldwin delivers the
line very believably.

Malice received mixed reviews. Roger Ebert summed it up when he said,
it was ”one of the busiest movies I’ve ever seen, a film jam-packed
with characters and incidents and blind alleys and red herrings.
Offhand, this is the only movie I can recall in which an entire
subplot about a serial killer is thrown in simply for atmosphere.”

With mixed reviews, a leading man who was on a losing streak, an
unproven leading lady and Bill Pullman, it’s no surprise Malice was
not a hit at the box office. But it is worth checking out on cable if
you’re in the mood for an absurd 90′s thriller.

Later that year, Kidman starred opposite Michael Keaton in Bruce Joel
Rubin’s melodrama, My Life.

Bruce Joel Rubin was the death-obsessed writer of Ghost and Jacob’s
Ladder. Following the success of Ghost, Rubin had carte blanche to do
whatever he wanted. What he wanted was to make a movie about a dying
man who records a final message for his unborn baby.

I think the premise tells you everything you need to know about My
Life. It is one of those emotionally manipulative tear-jerkers that
stacks the deck in its favor. Of course it’s sad seeing Batman die as
his son is being born. But it’s also cheating.

My Life received mixed to negative reviews and disappointed at the
box office.

1995 was a big year for Kidman. First, she starred opposite Val
Kilmer in Batman Forever.

Originally, Rene Russo was cast as Dr. Chase Meridian. But when
Michael Keaton opted out of reprising the role of Batman/Bruce Wayne,
the studio decided that Russo was “too old” for their new super hero.

As had been the case on the previous two Bat-films, there was a
scramble to cast a new leading lady. Conventional wisdom was that
Robin Wright would be cast. But instead, Kidman got the role. Many
attributed this casting coup to the influence of her husband.

Batman Forever was a crowded movie. Like Batman Returns, it doubled
down on villains. Tommy Lee Jones played Two Face and Jim Carrey
played the Riddler. The movie also had to find room for Chris
O’Donnell as Batman’s sidekick, Robin. With so many characters vying
for screen time, there wasn’t much for Kidman to do other than be
gorgeous.

Fortunately for Kidman, she excelled at being eye candy. Like most of
the Batman films of the era, reviews were mixed. But the movie was a
huge hit. After struggling in American cinema, Kidman was finally A-
list.

Later that year, Kidman starred in Gus Van Sant’s dark comedy, To Die
For.

To Die For was written by Buck Henry based on the novel of the same
name by Joyce Maynard. Maynard’s novel was based on the real life
trial of Pamela Smart, a school media services coordinator who was
convicted of seducing a 16-year-old student and convincing him to kill
her husband. Henry’s take on the dark material is satiric and
Kidman’s performance has just the right tough of comic edge.

Originally Meg Ryan was approached for the role of the fame-crazed
weather girl. When Ryan turned down the role, just about every
actress in Hollywood was considered. Ultimately, Kidman was cast.
She was rewarded with a Golden Globe for her wickedly funny turn.

To Die For received positive reviews from critics, but it was not a
big hit at the box office.

In 1996, Kidman starred opposite John Malcovich and Barbara Hershey in
Jane Campion’s period drama, Portrait of a Lady.

Portrait was Campion’s follow-up to The Piano which took home three
Oscars including Best Actress (Holly Hunter) and Best Supporting
Actress (Sookie Stackhouse, I mean Rogue, no wait Anna Paquin.)
Expectations were high. After winning a Golden Globe for To Die For,
Kidman was chasing Oscar bait.

Unfortunately, Portrait did not repeat the success of The Piano.
Reviews were mixed and the movie disappointed at the box office.

In 1997, Kidman starred opposite George Clooney in Mimi Leder’s action-
thriller, The Peacemaker.

Both Kidman and Clooney had something to prove at this point. Clooney
was still establishing himself as a movie star. His last film was the
high-profile flop, Batman and Robin. Meanwhile, Kidman had won some
awards and good reviews. But her only big box office hits could be
attributed to her husband or Batman. Teaming up for an action flick
about a stolen nuclear warhead could cement both actors on the A-list.

The Peacemaker was Leder’s first movie. She had started as a script
supervisor and eventually moved in to directing television shows like
China Beach. She became one of the core directors on Clooney’s hit TV
show, ER. This lead to her being selected by Stephen Spielberg to
direct The Peacemaker. At the time, there were very few female
directors in Hollywood. And fewer still directing action films.

Despite mostly negative reviews, audiences couldn’t resist such a good-
looking couple saving the world. The Peacemaker was a solid hit.

In 1998, Kidman co-starred with Sandra Bullock in the romantic-comedy,
Practical Magic.

Kidman and Bullock played sisters in a family of witches. The sisters
live under a curse that the men they fall in love with will die an
untimely death. Bullock played the more reserved sister and Kidman
played the free spirit. That sounds like it has the makings of a cute
rom-com, doesn’t it?

But director Griffen Dunne’s tone is all over the map. The film seems
to want to be a romantic comedy. But it feels like it was spliced
together with a horror movie when the girls accidentally kill an
abusive boyfriend and then bring him back to life only to have him
terrorize them.

Critics blasted Practical Magic and in spite of the heavy star-power
of Bullock and Kidman, the movie disappointed at the box office.

Later that year, Kidman started appearing in the play, The Blue Room,
in London. The sexually explicit play was directed by Sam Mendes
(American Beauty, Skyfall) and co-starred Iain Glen. The two-person
show consisted of a series of scenes with the two actors playing
different characters in each scene. One London critic called the show
“pure theatrical Viagra.”

Naturally, Americans wanted some of that action. So the show came to
Broadway in late 1998. Although the show received mixed reviews from
Broadway critics, it was an immediate hit. Kidman had a brief nude
scene in the show in which her bare bottom could be seen on a semi-
dark stage. Several reviews of the show offered advice on the best
seats to buy in order to get an unobstructed view of Kidman’s
derrière. Apparently they didn’t know you could just rent Billy
Bathgate for that.

In 1999, Kidman appeared opposite Tom Cruise for the last time in
Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut.

Kidman and Cruise play a married couple whose relationship is
jeopardized when Kidman’s character confesses to having a sexual
fantasy about a naval office she saw on vacation. This sends Cruise’s
character spiraling on an adventure through the seedy New York under-
ground. Eventually, he finds himself in the middle of a secret
society that holds bizarre masked orgies.

Kubrick had been developing Eyes Wide Shut for decades. In the 70′s,
he considered a comic take with Woody Allen in the lead role. Later,
he imagined it as a sexual comedy with “a wild and somber streak”
starring Steve Martin. In the 90′s, Kubrick considered Alec Baldwin
and Kim Basinger. Eventually, the legendary director met with Cruise
and Kidman who were in London while Kidman was filming Portrait of a
Lady. After that meeting, Kubrick cast the couple in Eyes Wide Shut.

Kubrick’s perfectionism is the stuff of legend. Eyes Wide Shut would
be the director’s final film. He died after completing it before the
film was released. The shoot began in November of 1996 and continued
until 1998. This qualifies for The Guinness World Records for the
longest continuous film shoot of all time.

Eyes Wide Shut was originally slapped with an NC-17 rating which would
mean certain death at the box office. In order to get an R-rating,
Warner Brothers used CGI to cover up some of the offending bits.
Kubrick’s uncut version was later released on video.

Reviews were mostly positive. The opening weekend exceeded the
studio’s expectations. But audiences didn’t seem to know what to make
of the movie. It ultimately made a healthy profit at the box office,
but some consider it a disappointment.

In 2001, Cruise and Kidman announced they were getting a divorce.
Like all three of Cruise’s divorces, this one was shrouded in
secrecy. (Another odd commonality is that Cruise divorced all three
of his wives when they were thirty-three years old.) Over the years,
a few details have come out.

Kidman has discussed their attempts at having children. Kidman had at
least two miscarriages during their marriage. The couple ended up
adopting two children. According to Going Clear, the Church of
Scientology attempted to separate Cruise from Kidman. Shortly after
her most recent pregnancy, Cruise became angry and left Kidman. She
miscarried not long after which some attribute to stress.

As with Mimi Rogers before her, Kidman did not want the divorce.
Cruise decided unilaterally that the marriage was over. Reportedly,
the Church of Scientology separated Kidman from her adopted children
and turned them against her as well.

While Kidman’s personal life seemed to be falling apart, he career
was about to go to the next level.

Kidman kicked off 2001 starring opposite Ewan McGregor in Baz
Luhrmann’s pop-filled musical, Moulin Rouge.

Kidman played a courtesan who falls in love with a lowly writer played
by McGregor. But she has been promised to a wealthy duke. Luhrmann’s
films are always highly stylized, but Moulin Rouge took those
sensibilities to new levels. The movie assaults the senses with
contemporary pop music and flights of fancy.

Moulin Rouge received mostly positive reviews and was a hit at the box
office. The movie and the soundtrack became a cultural phenomenon.
Kidman won another Golden Globe and was nominated an Oscar.

Later that year, Kidman starred in the moody thriller, The Others.

The story is set in the aftermath of World War 2. Kidman plays a
mother of two children who have a rare disease that makes them
extremely sensitive to light. I realize the movie is over a decade
old, but I don’t want to reveal too many details in case anyone hasn’t
seen it. The twisty, atmospheric horror story is both scary and
moving. If you haven’t seen it, you should definitely check it out
before someone blows the ending for you.

The Others received positive reviews and was a big hit at the box
office. Kidman was nominated for another Golden Globe for Best
Actress in a Drama while winning for Best Actress in a Musical or
Comedy for Moulin Rouge.

In 2002, Kidman starred opposite Ben Chaplin in the crime drama,
Birthday Girl. The film opened in 2001 in England.

Chaplin played an English clerk who sends away for a mail-order bride
on the internet. Kidman plays the bride who speaks no English. Their
relationship starts as purely sexual although eventually an emotional
bond is formed. Eventually, she is taken prisoner and the clerk is
forced to steal to pay the ransom.

Birthday Girl received mixed to positive reviews and was a modest hit
at the box office.

Later that year, Kidman played author Virginia Woolf in The Hours.

The movie tells the stories of three women in different generations
and how they are impacted by Woolf’s novel, Mrs. Dalloway. Meryl
Streep and Julianne Moore play women in the 50s and present day whose
lives are touched by the book. Kidman, who was almost unrecognizable
under the make-up, played the doomed author who struggled with
depression and mental illness.

The Hours received positive reviews and was a hit at the box office.
As often happens when glamorous Hollywood actors take on unglamorous
roles, Kidman cleaned up at the awards. She won her third Golden
Globe and her first Oscar.

2003 was a busy year for Kidman. First, she starred in director Lars
von Trier’s drama, Dogville. Dogville was the first in von Trier’s
USA – Land of Opportunities trilogy.

Kidman played a woman on the run from the mob. She trades safety for
physical labor in a small mountain town. The movie uses minimal sets
like a stage play. Little by little, the town begins taking advantage
of the desperate woman they are supposedly protecting.

Dogville opened to mixed to positive reviews. Some critics, like
Roger Ebert, complained that the movie was too anti-American. It
received only a limited release in the US, but it did turn a profit.

Later that year, Kidman starred opposite Anthony Hopkins in the big
screen adaptation of the novel, The Human Stain.

Hopkins played a disgraced college professor who was forced to resign
after accusations of making racist remarks in class. Kidman played
his much younger mistress. The couple faces challenges from Hopkins’
ex-faculty and Kidman’s unstable ex-husband played by Ed Harris.

A lot of Kidman’s movies have twist endings and I have been careful
not to spoil them. But I’m going to spoil this one. So skip ahead if
you don’t want to be spoiled. In the end, it is revealed that
Hopkins’ character is actually a light-skinned African-American. Uh,
yeah. Right.

Reviews were mixed. Many critics praised Hopkins’ and Kidman’s
performances while saying they were miscast in their roles. The movie
flopped at the box office.

Kidman recovered later that year in Anthony Minghella’s Cold Mountain.

Kidman played a Southern belle who falls for a confederate soldier
about to go off to war. The soldier, played by Jude Law, eventually
deserts the Confederate army to return to his love. While he is away,
Kidman’s character befriends a plucky tom-boy played by Renee
Zellweger who helps her survive the brutal winter.

Cold Mountain received mostly positive reviews and was a hit at the
box office. It was nominated for more than seventy awards including
seven Academy Award nominations. Kidman was nominated for another
Golden Globe.

In 2004, Kidman starred opposite Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler and
Christopher Walken in Frank Oz’s remake of The Stepford Wives.

The original Stepford Wives was a creepy Twilight Zone-like tale of a
town where the feminist movement never seems to have happened. It
combines a sense of dread with cutting social satire. The remake
gives up trying to duplicate that delicate balance and instead goes
for broad comedy.

The Stepford Wives was a notoriously troubled production. John and
Joan Cusack were originally supposed to co-star, but they both pulled
out and were replaced by Broderick and Middler. Oz clashed on the set
with several members of his cast including Kidman, Walken, Middler and
Glenn Close.

After filming was completed, the script was rewritten. The rewrites
created some serious plot holes. The original film had a chilling and
memorable ending. But the remake just didn’t make any sense. Kidman
was so dissatisfied, she considered leaving the project.

The Stepford Wives received terrible reviews and flopped at the box
office. With the inclusion of international ticket sales, the movie
barely broke even. Oz took the blame for the movie’s failure saying,
“I f***ed up… I had too much money, and I was too responsible and
concerned for Paramount. I was too concerned for the producers. And I
didn’t follow my instincts.”

This is where Kidman’s burgeoning career starts to implode.

Later that year, Kidman starred in the bizarre drama, Birth.

Kidman played a wealthy widow who gradually becomes convinced that a
ten-year old boy is her late husband reincarnated. Yeah, it’s pretty
icky. The film sparked controversy for a scene in which Kidman’s
character bathes with the child she believes is her husband.

When the movie premiered at the Venice Film Festival, it was greeted
by boos and catcalls. Reviews were mostly negative although Kidman
received praise for her brave performance. She was nominated for yet
another Golden Globe. However, the movie flopped at the box office
which isn’t surprising given the subject matter.

In 2005, Kidman starred opposite Sean Penn in Sydney Pollack’s
political thriller, The Interpreter.

Kidman played a UN interpreter who overhears an assassination plot.
Penn played a Secret Service agent sent to protect her. Despite mixed
reviews, the movie was a hit at the box office.

Later that year, Kidman starred opposite Will Ferrell and Shirley
MacLaine in Nora Ephron’s big-screen adaptation of the TV show,
Bewitched.

Ephron was faced with a big problem. Although beloved by many,
Bewitched didn’t have enough substance to base a movie on. Her
solution to the problem scores points for originality. Instead of
adapting Bewitched, she made a meta movie about a Hollywood adaptation
of Bewitched.

Ferrell played a vain actor cast in the role of Darrin in a Bewitched
movie. Afraid of being upstaged, he insists that an unknown play
Samantha. Kidman played a real witch who moved to LA to try to live a
normal life. Eventually she is cast in the role of Samantha in the
movie-within-a-movie.

Originality was about the only thing the movie had going for it. Fans
of the show were disappointed by the meta concept. Reviews were
terrible. The movie disappointed at the box office. Kidman and
Ferrell won a Razzie Award for Worst Screen Couple.

In 2006, Kidman starred opposite Robert Downey Jr. in another bizarre
drama, Fur.

Downey played a man suffering from Hypertrichosis which causes him to
be covered in fur. Kidman plays his neighbor who starts a
relationship with him. I haven’t seen the movie myself, so I am going
to rely on the plots synopsis from Wikipedia which informs me that “An
incident with a clogged drain leads her to a relationship with Lionel
and entry into a netherworld populated by transvestites, dwarves and
others living on the fringes of society.”

The movie where she bathed with a 10-year old boy doesn’t sound so
weird now.

Fur got mixed reviews and was barely noticed at the box office.

Later that year, Kidman did voice work in the animated feature, Happy
Feet. Happy Feet included the voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams,
Brittany Murphy and Hugh Jackman. The dancing penguin movie was
directed by Australian director George Miller who had produced many of
Kidman’s early films including Dead Calm. The movie received positive
reviews and was a hit at the box office.

In 2006, Kidman re-married. Her second husband is Australian country
music singer Keith Urban. The couple currently has two daughters.

In 2007, Kidman starred opposite Daniel Craig in The Invasion.

The Invasion was the fourth big-screen adaptation of the 1955 novel
The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney. Like the previous adaptations, the
film is about an alien force that takes control of people once they
fall asleep.

The Invasion was a notoriously troubled project. It went through
several name changes and revisions. At one point, Kidman was injured
while riding in a car that was being towed by a stunt driver. She
broke several ribs and was hospitalized.

Originally, The Invasion was schedule for a 2006 release. But the
release was pushed back to accommodate reshoots. Reviews were
terrible and the movie flopped at the box office making Kidman the
Queen of the Bad Remake.

Later that year, Kidman starred opposite Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jack
Black in the dramedy, Margot at the Wedding.

Kidman played a successful writer who goes to visit her sister on the
eve of her wedding. Leigh played the free-spirited sister who is
preparing to marry Black’s character. Tensions arise because Kidman’s
character doesn’t approve. Can you blame her? If your sister was
Jennifer Jason Leigh and she was about to marry Jack Black, wouldn’t
you object?

Margot received mixed reviews and barely registered at the box office.

Kidman rounded out 2007 by appeared in the big-budget fantasy film,
The Golden Compass.

The Golden Compass was based on the first book in Philip Pullman’s
trilogy His Dark Materials. The books are controversial for their
anti-religion message. They serve as a kind of counterpoint to the
Narnia books. Following the success of the first Narnia movie as well
as the Lord of the Rings, studios were hungry for fantasy films.

Director Chris Weitz tried to focus on the fantasy elements while
removing any material that might be deemed too controversial for
mainstream audiences. All the same, Christians protesters worried
that the movie would cause kids to pick up the books which they
considered offensive.

Reviews were negative and the movie disappointed at the box office.
Thanks to the international grosses, it managed to turn a profit. But
the planned sequels were never made.

In 2008, Kidman starred opposite Hugh Jackman in Baz Luhrmann’s
historical romance, Australia.

Originally, Russell Crowe was attached to star in the Aussie love
story. But Crowe demanded personal script approval before he would
sign. Luhrmann and Crowe couldn’t work things out, so Luhrmann sought
to cast Heath Ledger. Eventually, Hugh Jackman was cast.

Reviews were mixed to negative. While Australia disappointed in the
US, it ended up making a healthy profit overseas.

The following year, Kidman appeared in Rob Marshall’s musical, Nine.

Nine was adapted from the 1982 musical of the same name which was
inspired by Federico Fellini’s semi-autobiographical film 8½.
Kidman’s role was originally offered to Catherine Zeta-Jones who had
worked with Marshall before on Chicago. Zeta-Jones left the
production when Marshall refused to expand the role for the movie.
Kidman took over the role and began rehearsals just four weeks after
giving birth to her daughter.

Nine received horrible reviews and flopped at the box office.

In 2010, Kidman starred opposite Aaron Eckhart in the drama, Rabbit
Hole.

Kidman and Eckhart play a couple struggling to deal with the death of
their four-year-old son. The movie was based on a play of the same
name. Kidman produced the film through her company, Blossom Films.
Despite positive reviews, the movie was ignored at the box office.
Kidman received several awards nominations including nominations for
the Oscars and Golden Globes.

In 2011, Kidman made the mystifying decision to appear in a cameo role
in Adam Sandler’s “comedy” Just Go With It. One hopes a large
paycheck was involved. Reviews were terrible because all Adam Sandler
movies are terrible (although I did like The Wedding Singer). And
like most Sandler movies, Just Go With It was a hit anyway. As
punishment, Kidman was nominated for a Razzie for Worst Supporting
Actress.

Later that year, Kidman starred opposite Nicolas Cage in Joel
Schumacher’s Trespass.

Trespass was directed by Kidman’s Batman Forever director, Joel
Schumacher. Ever since Batman and Robin, Schumacher had struggled.
Every movie he has made since seems like an effort to prove he is not
a campy director. Every film is so dark and gritty, they feel like
snuff films.

Cage and Kidman play a couple whose home is invaded by kidnappers who
torture them in hopes of stealing something of value. Little by
little, the experience reveals family secrets as well as some secrets
about the home invaders.

Before you run out and rent it, let me warn you that my description
makes it sound much more interesting than it actually is.

Reviews were negative and the movie bombed. Kidman and Cage were
nominated for Worst Screen Couple by the Golden Raspberries.

In 2012, Kidman starred opposite Clive Owen in Philip Kaufman’s
biopic, Hemingway & Gellhorn.

Owen played writer Ernest Hemingway and Kidman played his wife,
journalist Martha Gellhorn. The movie covers their relationship which
was Hemingway’s third marriage.

Hemingway & Gellhorn was an HBO movie. Reviews were mixed, but Kidman
was nominated once again for a Golden Globe.

Kidman appeared on the big screen opposite Matthew McConaughey and Zac
Efron in The Paperboy.

McConaughey and Efron play brothers who attempt to exonerate a man on
death row played by John Cusack. Kidman plays a woman who writes the
accused murderer letters. Even though they have never met, she is in
love with him. She helps the brothers in their effort to free him so
that they can be married.

The movie premiered at Cannes where it garnered a vocal reaction. The
claim has been made that it holds the record for the longest standing
ovation at the festival. However, others claim that the response
included “ jeering, squawking and mooing”.

Reviews for the film were mixed and it bombed at the box office. But
Kidman was nominated for several awards including the Golden Globe.
They really seem to love her, don’t they?

In 2013, Kidman starred as an unstable matriarch in the horror film,
Stoker, which has nothing to do with vampires. Reviews were mixed to
positive, but the movie bombed at the box office. Kidman has two more
films schedule for release in 2013. The first is The Railway Man with
Colin Firth. And then she’ll play Grace Kelley in Grace of Monaco.
She also has a cameo role in the Anchorman sequel starring her
Bewitched co-star, Will Ferrell.

As you can see, Kidman is still an extremely busy actress. She still
racks up Golden Globe nominations every time she leaves the house.
There are those who will argue that she is still an A-list actress.
But in recent years, the movies have gotten smaller. She is shifting
from a leading lady to playing supporting roles.

So, what the hell happened?

Kidman rose to fame based largely on her marriage to the biggest movie
star in the world. But she got to the top of the A-list based on her
own abilities. Even after her famous husband left her, Kidman’s star
continued to rise.

When she started starring in big budget summer movies, Kidman made
several mis-steps. She took chances on arty movies that alienated
audiences. And her mainstream films like The Stepford Wives and
Bewitched were embarrassing failures. At the prime of her career,
Kidman was making movies no one wanted to see.

As with all actresses, age eventually plays a role. Kidman has
clearly been under the knife. There are some very unflattering post-
op pictures floating around the internet.

The sad fact of Hollywood life is that very few actresses maintain
successful careers in their forties. It is natural and expected that
Kidman’s career would cool off at this point. Fortunately, she is
still giving interesting performances in a variety of movies.