Nicole Kidman’s Upcoming Movie Is So 'Juicy' That She Went Through Some Major Acting Firsts

Alongside stars like Meryl Streep, Jane Fonda, Viola Davis and Anne Hathaway, Nicole Kidman is one of the most legendary actresses in Hollywood. So, of course, finding out that she’s learning a thing or two in a new project is both surprising and utterly intriguing.

Her new movie, Babygirl, allowed Kidman to come out of her shell (and perhaps her clothes) in one of the raciest movies she’s done to date. “I’ve made some films that are pretty exposing, but not like this,” Kidman told Vanity Fair.

More from SheKnows

In the movie, which premieres next week at the Venice Film Festival, Kidman plays a married high-power business executive who begins a “juicy” affair with her intern (Harris Dickinson).

According to the Oscar winner, filming the sex scenes, under the direction of Bodies Bodies Bodies director Halina Reijn, was quite taxing.

“It left me ragged,” Kidman admitted. “At some point, I was like, ‘I don’t want to be touched. I don’t want to do this anymore,’ but at the same time I was compelled to do it.”

“I felt very exposed as an actor, as a woman, as a human being,” she said of the filming process. “I had to go in and go out like, I need to put my protection back on. ‘What have I just done? Where did I go? What did I do?’”

When shooting got tough, she luckily had Reijn to rely on. “Halina would hold me and I would hold her, because it was just very confronting to me,” Kidman remembered.

BABYGIRL, from left: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, 2024. ph: Niko Tavernise / ? A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection
Babygirl, from left: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, 2024.

Now that the movie is getting ready to be released to the world, Kidman, who’s starred in many R-rated movies over the years like The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Boy Erased and Eyes Wide Shut, is starting to get the jitters. “It’s like, Golly, I’m doing this, and it’s actually now going to be seen by the world,” Kidman said. “That’s a very weird feeling. This is something you do and hide in your home videos. It is not a thing that normally is going to be seen by the world.”

As a reminder, this won’t be the first time we see Kidman as the steamy leading lady this year. In June, she starred in Netflix’s A Family Affair where she lived an onscreen romance with much younger Zac Efron.

“I think there’s something in the culture right now,” A Family Affair director Richard Lagravenese told SheKnows. “[There’s] this idea that it doesn’t matter what age you are, and especially women, can experience their ability to love and their sexuality at any age, at any time, with anyone and there shouldn’t be any issue about it.” We couldn’t agree more!

Before you go, click here to see the steamiest sex scenes between older women and younger men.

Best of SheKnows

Sign up for SheKnows' Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.