The first thing I thought of wasDays of Thunder, says the droll Tennessee author.
I was obsessed with that film, because of NASCAR.
But then I realized, Oh, wait,Birth.To Die For.The Hours.
Credit: Jeff Vespa/WireImage
Holy s,Dogville!
It made so much sense.
Im very interested in messy, Kidman says in her Aussie-tinged Marilyn Monroe whisper.
Because everything is messy, even if it doesnt look so.
I mean, think about Dostoevsky and Tolstoy, thats just messy, messy.
Right now Im reading Elena Ferrante and thats messy.
And thats what Im drawn to.
The sugarcoated, rose-colored glasses kind of art is probably not my best milieu.
Shes raising two young daughters with her husband, country star Keith Urban, in Nashville.
Im fascinated how people blur that public-private line because they dont know anything else.
Just the human-ness of that.
Errant misfires likeGrace of Monaconotwithstanding, Kidmans steely resolve as an performer is underrated.
The performance deservedly earned her Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild award nominations.
Kidman says it was the caliber of filmmakers on her resume that strengthened her sense of daring.
Ive had extraordinary relationships with directors where my opinion is heard, loudly.
She has worked with such legendarily difficult helmers as Stanley Kubrick onEyes Wide Shutand Lars von Trier onDogville.
And they were incredibly collaborative with me, she says.
But I believe in the hierarchy of the director.
Its their art form and Im only there to help them achieve it.
Which is exactly her attitude as a producer.
Her goal is to enable artists to have their vision realized without interference.
She validated me as a director, Bateman says.
And that really came from her desire to bring more offbeat material to market.
We need people like her in the film industry.
Thats more commercial, so I was confident wed get it made, she says.
But still, five female leads thats pretty fabulous.
And she hasnt seen the last of families of fangs.
Its calledCuddles, she says with a laugh thats both girlish and filled with conviction.
Its particularly dark and crazy and fantastic.
Just the flavor she likes.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: I was looking at your credits andBMX Banditscame out in 1983.
Can you believe youve been acting in movies for almost 35 years?
NICOLE KIDMAN:Yeah, I can actually.
I feel like thats been my life.
Since I was 14, isnt that crazy?
My first play wasSpring Awakening.
You madePortrait of a Ladywith her, but she was there at the very beginning.
And Im going back to Australia soon to be inTop of the Lake 2for her.
Its a supporting role, thats all I can manage.
But I was like, Ill do anything for you Jane.
Shes so great and Im so close to her.
Is it satisfying to you that youve maintained that collaboration?
Its great having that path together.
Actually, your first credit as a producer was Campions movieIn the Cut, which starred Meg Ryan.
Yeah, but I didnt really produce that.
I had optioned the book.
And then Jane and I worked with Susanna Moore on the screenplay and then basically Jane took it over.
I was going to play the lead and I bowed out.
Oh, so you cant just live your private life through the movies?
No [laughs].
And Im not willing to sacrifice my life life for my artistic life.
Yeah, that was so…gosh.
I was very close to my father and it was very sudden and awful.
And I have a sister and a mother and he was very much our patriarch.
To lose him was and still is devastating.
I talk about it because it keeps him present.
And also I think thats different from when I say privacy those are universal emotions that people go through.
But it was admirable that you were so open about it.
Well, theyre milestones in peoples lives and those things are what we have to connect us together.
Loss and grief and extraordinary joy as well.
Theyre the universal things that I love to explore artistically and just live and feel.
All those normal parts of life need to have walls around them so that they can exist.
Thats the thing thats explored inThe Family Fang, right?
Right, the father in that does blur that line because he doesnt know anything else.
He doesnt want anything else.
Im fascinated how people that blur that public-private line because they dont know anything else.
Just the human-ness of that.
Its an interesting commentary about crazy families and where is the place for children within crazy families.
Most everyone I speak to goes, Oh, yeah, yeah, if you knew my family.
As a female I had a different attitude about it.
And thats not what Christopher Walkens character thinks in the movie?
No, he doesnt find that and I think a lot of people dont find that.
And you cant blame your parents for everything because youve gotta get on with it.
And thats an interesting thing to explore.
Your favorite actress is Vivian Leigh, who played strong, fragile women and was quite damaged herself.
What does that say about the parts youre drawn to?
Im very interested in messy, because everything is messy, even if it doesnt look so.
And Im also interested in truth and authenticity.
I mean, think about Dostoevsky and Tolstoy, thats just messy, messy.
Right now Im reading Elena Ferrante and thats messy.
And thats what Im drawn to.
The sugarcoated, rose-colored-glasses kind of art is probably not my best milieu.
Youre more drawn to the dark side?
Well, it doesnt necessarily have to be dark.
Did you relate to that in some way?
Yeah, directors find ways to convince you to do something.
When I started out there were probably some times when I was pretty naive and taken advantage of.
But Im usually working with directors of a particular caliber.
Usually its a two way street and theres a discussion about what we both want.
And its pretty pure.
Ive usually had extraordinary relationships with directors where my voice is heard, loudly.
I mean, Ive worked with Kubrick.
Ive worked with Lars [von Trier].
What were they like?
So thats where I am as a producer as well.
But Im there to help to help the artistic vision to get it through to the end.
Did you think about directingThe Family Fangyourself?
Its not my tone.
I wouldnt want to be struggling to tell the story.
You wouldnt do it just for the cachet?
Ive worked with the greatest directors in the world and it comes from some other place.
I dont think you’re able to explain it.
Ive got a lot of knowledge about cameras, but I would just have to emotionally feel it.
Which is the only way I can give a good performance too.
If I can feel it, it flows out.
If Im struggling to grasp it, its already flailing.
Oh, stepping out on stage is terrifying.
You appeared in the new playPhotograph 51in London last year, about the scientist Rosalind Franklin.
What was that experience like?
It was probably the most satisfying experience Ive ever had.
In my curtain call, tears would come down my face.
Being on stage like that, its incredibly direct.
Is it true well see you performing it on Broadway in the fall?
Were tying to see if we can.
It would be lovely.
Id love not to have London be the last time I play her.
Thats their bedtime when youre on stage.
And they get upset and its awful.
And thats a real consideration, right?
If I was a single woman, Id be darting off doing so many other things.
Ive had moments when Id been sick and Ive had these huge epiphanies.
Theres thathospice nurse who wrote about the top regrets of people who were dying.
And very common was that people wished theyd spent more time with friends and family.
You never hear anyone saying I wish I hadnt spent as much.
I think you probably hear some people say, I wish I hadnt given up things.
And that shed followed a different career path.
But a lot of women of her generation didnt have that choice.
But in terms of your career, you cant have any regrets, can you?
Id really like to make some movie that penetrates the psyche of the world, deeply.
Whats the last movie of yours that penetrated the psyche of the world?
Oh, I dont know.
I love you, Satine.
Its very sweet of them.
Kevin Wilson said he first remembered seeing you inDays of Thunder.
[laughs] That did not penetrate the psych of the world.
But he also said that your best performance was inBirth.
Oh, did he?
That didnt penetrate the world either, but I love that film so much.
And I think people who see it are deeply affected by it.The Hourshas had that effect, too.
What are a few films, not yours, that you think penetrated the psyche of the world?
All of the Ingmar Bergman films, or most of them.
Fellini, at different times, though almost all of the time.
What about films in the last few years?
Im so old school, so probably not many of my references are recent.
I think Lars von Trier still has the ability to delve incredibly deep.
CertainlyThe Tree of Life, the Terrence Malick film.
Ive seen it five times.
And thats a long film.
But it washes over me.
Have you felt the public perception of you change over the years?
I dont know [laughs].
It changed in 1995 withTo Die For, certainly.
Im a wild card, thats how Id describe myself.
Im never sure what Im going to do next.
Its just so weird how I operate.
Is there a wild card quality to your producing career?
Rabbit Holewas deeply personal.
Its unbearable, so for some reason I had to make that.
And I think the play that David Lindsay-Abaire [who also adaptedThe Family Fang] wrote was gorgeous.
He won the Pulitzer, as he should have.
Im so glad we got that made.
But it wasnt easy, was it?
It was so hard.
Raising that money was so hard.
People were like, Wait, what?
What drew you toBig Little Lies, which youre starring in and producing and filming for HBO right now?
She called me and said, Read this book, I think we should go get it.
Then 48 hours later she gave it to us.
And 18 months later were getting it made, which is amazing.
Kevin Wilson told me that you said the exact same thing to him.
[laughs] Yeah, but I dont say it to many people.
But in both cases, you were right.
Do you feel fortified that it’s possible for you to get these things made?
But still, five female leads thats pretty fabulous.
The whole reason for me to act is to be connected and feel part of something.
Im not interested in looking down on characters or people.
I would hope that carried over into my career as a producer.
