Nicole Kidman’s Girls Are Seldom Seen In Public, But Fans Got A Rare Glimpse At This Awards Show

Despite our social media-obsessed culture, Hollywood superstar Nicole Kidman has somehow managed to keep her public and private life separate. She and her husband Keith Urban carefully control what is revealed about their marriage, and they keep even closer control over their two children, who are barely ever glimpsed by the media. That’s why the family’s appearance at the 2021 Golden Globes was such a surprise for the world.

Family Appearance

February 28, 2021 saw Kidman and her family make a virtual appearance at the Golden Globes ceremony. The star was nominated for Best Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture for The Undoing. Things got off to a rocky start, though, when host Amy Poehler joked that, “The Undoing was a sexy and dramatic mystery where Nicole Kidman’s coat is suspected of murdering her wig.” 

Rare Kid Spotting

Kidman took the jibe in stride, though in the end, she lost out to Anya Taylor-Joy for her performance in Netflix’ The Queen’s Gambit. But this wasn’t what really got tongues wagging. Instead, there was a hubbub when the entire Kidman-Urban clan appeared via Zoom, including daughters Sunday and Faith, who are rarely seen in public. 

Dream Family

It was fitting in a way because her family is clearly incredibly important to Kidman. In 2018 she told The Australian Women’s Weekly, “To have met Keith just before I turned 40 and to be able to have Sunny and Fifi with him, what a beautiful, unexpected turn of events for me. I wanted it and I dreamed of it but I had no idea if it was actually going to happen.”

Second Stride

A Hollywood titan for three decades, Kidman’s career experienced something of a lull in the early part of the 2010s. But ever since she picked up her fourth Oscar nomination for 2016’s Lion, she has enjoyed a renaissance. She followed that film with more critically acclaimed work like The Killing of a Sacred Deer and even ventured into blockbuster territory with Aquaman.

Moving To TV

Yet Kidman’s greatest mainstream success of recent years has been in her move to high-budget television. She starred in two seasons of HBO’s Big Little Lies, winning the Best Actress Golden Globe and Emmy Award for her performance. The Undoing was her next HBO miniseries, and the release of Hulu’s Nine Perfect Strangers is just around the corner.

Shy Start

With regard to her personal life, Kidman met her future husband in 2005 at the amusingly named “G’Day USA” gala. Kidman gave Urban her phone number, but the Aussie singer songwriter took four months to call the actress back. Kidman believed he wasn’t interested in her, but Urban later revealed he simply didn’t think someone like her would be into him.

Falling Hard

The couple tied the knot in 2006 after a whirlwind romance. And Kidman told People magazine that she knew she wanted to marry Urban within six months of their first date. The exact moment came on her 38th birthday when he took her away for a surprise trip to Woodstock. She revealed, “I believed by that point he was the love of my life.”

Breaking His Addiction

But Urban spent a quarter of their first year as a married couple in a rehab treatment facility. He’d previously attended two facilities to combat his addictions to drugs and alcohol, but this time the love of a good woman helped him conquer them once and for all. He told Rolling Stone, “I was spiritually awoken with her...for the first time in my life, I could shake off the shackles of addiction.”

Two Babies

The couple’s first child, Sunday Rose Kidman Urban, came along on July 7, 2008. People revealed she was named in honor of Urban’s grandmother and also Australian artist Sunday Reed. A second daughter followed in 2011, this time with the use of a surrogate. The couple wrote on Instagram that Faith Margaret Kidman Urban was a true blessing and a gift.

Still Wanting More

Plus Kidman told Vogue magazine in 2015 that she would love to have been able to have more children with Urban, but she’d gotten together with him in her late 30s. She said, “I wish I could have met [Keith] much earlier and had way more children with him, but I didn’t. I mean, if I could have had two more children with him, that would have been just glorious.”

Homebird

In 2019 Kidman revealed to InStyle magazine that she is a real homebird. She said, “Other people are off doing things like having a girls’ weekend. I don’t have that because I go home. I want to be with my children and my husband.” The star added, “I’m an introvert, so my nature is very quiet, and I prefer being home.” 

Tech Invasion

In October 2020 Kidman appeared via Zoom on the U.K. daytime chat show Loose Women. She was asked to name her biggest worry as a parent to her two young girls, and she quickly answered, “The technology. I’m not very techy myself. It’s very hard for me to monitor it and stay on it.”

Drawing A Line

“I won’t let them be on Instagram,” continued the Bombshell star, who admitted this decision hasn’t been popular with Sunday. “I have a 12-year-old right now who is chomping at the bit and wants to get into all of that. It’s just that constant push, pull. I’d say a lot of parents would say the same thing.”

Giving Space

The mom was then asked on Loose Women what she prioritises when she is parenting her daughters and she replied, “I think it’s keeping their confidence and their self-esteem intact. And still guiding them, not being overbearing, trying not to ‘helicopter parent.’ Allowing them to make mistakes and fall down and not trying to sort of absorb that pain.” 

Her Biggest Joy

Although everything to do with parenting couldn’t be covered in a single interview, Kidman did remember to gush about how much she loves being a mom. She said, “But it’s a joy, it’s a joy having these beautiful little women that are growing up and I’m discovering them day by day. I love it.” 

Her Other Children

Yet Kidman’s relationship with her daughters is a far cry from the one she has with her two adopted children from her previous marriage to Tom Cruise. Because when she and Cruise divorced in 2001, Isabella and Connor chose to stay with their father. This meant they stayed in the embrace of the controversial Scientology church Cruise has long been a member of.

Losing Her Connection

Kidman rejected the religion following the divorce and was thus labelled a “suppressive person.” Then devoted scientologists were told by the church to disconnect themselves from her and, sadly, this included her own children, according to website New Idea. She became fully estranged from Cruise and attempts were made to remove her from the kids’ inner circle. 

Refusing To Comment

But Bella and Connor didn’t fully commit to this removal at first. In 2006 they attended their mother’s wedding to Urban, for instance. But later circumstances became more and more difficult. Kidman wound up estranged from her children but refused to speak publicly about it for the longest time.

Putting Her Kids First

In 2018 she finally broke her silence on the matter during an interview with WHO magazine. She explained, “I’m very private about all that. I have to protect all those relationships. I know 150 percent that I would give up my life for my children because it’s what my purpose is.”

Unconditional Love

Regarding Bella and Connor’s decision to remain part of Scientology, she said, “They are adults. They are able to make their own decisions. They have made choices to be Scientologists and, as a mother, it’s my job to love them. And I am an example of that tolerance and that’s what I believe – that no matter what your child does, the child has love…”

Staying Open

While Kidman mightn’t have liked her children’s decision, she refused to let it change her feelings toward them. She told WHO magazine, “I think that’s so important because if that is taken away from a child, to sever that in any child, in any relationship, in any family – I believe it’s wrong. So that’s our job as a parent, to always offer unconditional love.”

Closing The Distance

Then in 2019 a report emerged via OK! magazine claiming Kidman had been welcomed back into Bella and Connor’s lives. An unnamed friend of Kidman told the publication, “They’re chatting with Nicole fairly regularly. Connor and Bella haven’t met their younger siblings and that’s something Nicole hopes to change.”

Open Invitation

By April 2021 no reunion had taken place, but an unnamed inside source told New Idea that Kidman hadn’t given up. And the insider claimed Kidman was pushing for Connor to leave his home in Florida, which is closely monitored by Scientology representatives. The source alleged Kidman wanted him to move to Australia to be closer to her.

Leaving The Charter

Connor owns a fishing charter in Florida, but Kidman allegedly doesn’t see that as too much of a hindrance in him moving to the land of Oz. The source explained, “It might be a case of wishful thinking, but she knows he would love the beaches and the people, and he could easily continue his hospitality work there.” The insider even claimed Connor thinks of Australia as his home away from home.

Glamour At Home

Speaking of home, Kidman and Urban’s house in Australia was where she and the family Zoomed into the Golden Globes from. All award nominees appeared via video link for the event, which was hosted in-person by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. It meant Kidman, Urban, Faith and Sunday could experience the glamour of the awards from the comfort of their own couch.

Dressed To The Nines

Despite staying home, the family were dressed to the nines for the prestigious awards show. Because Kidman wore a gorgeous Louis Vuitton gown, and she was seated between her two daughters, both of whom were wearing white dresses. Urban also looked dapper in his black tuxedo, and the family waited with bated breath to see if Kidman had won.

Unexpected Appearances

And although Kidman was overlooked, it still looked like a fun evening was had by the family. Fans were fascinated about the girls being made a part of the event, as it was such an unusual public appearance for 12-year-old Sunday and 10-year-old Margaret. They are normally kept firmly out of the limelight by their parents, you see. 

Small Roles

Perhaps the awards show appearance was part of a gradual introduction to the showbiz world that Kidman has been treating her daughters to over the last few years. Because recently she revealed they have been following her footsteps into acting with small roles in some of their mom’s productions. For instance, Sunday and Faith both appeared in Big Little Lies.

Introducing The Industry

Kidman revealed that her girls had blink-and-you’ll-miss-it roles in the show during an appearance on The Ellen Degeneres Show in October 2018. She admitted, “They were in as extras in Big Little Lies, which I’ve never told anyone. There I am now being a big mouth.” She then elaborated about this on Good Morning America (GMA) in May 2019.

Playing Extras

“You see them fleetingly in the classroom scenes,” Kidman explained. This was backed up by Cameron Crovetti, who played one of Kidman’s sons on the show. He told Huffington Post, “In the classroom scene where I say, ‘What about a dead father?’ and we’re sitting down in a circle, Faith was sitting next to me. And they did some other scenes, yeah!”

Bringing The Kids

Kidman told the GMA audience that it was special to have her daughters on-set. She explained, “I’ve always said this. There’s something wonderful about bringing your children to work, and them seeing what you do, and them being a part of it, and being interested and curious and feeling like it’s theirs as well.” 

Beloved Guests

The girls must have left a good impression, too, as Kidman’s co-star Zoe Kravitz was complimentary when she spoke with Entertainment Tonight. She revealed they never sought attention and blended in perfectly. She laughed, “Yeah, they’re around a lot and I sometimes can’t tell when they’re actually in a scene or just hanging out. But they’re so sweet and really, really smart.”

Tough Work

Kidman’s daughters once again appeared with their mother in an HBO show, a few years later. This time it was The Undoing, and Kidman told News.com.au that her daughters were troopers on the New York shoot. She said, “They’re in the first episode. They’re used to being extras, but they did five days in the freezing cold, never complained, and didn’t get any special treatment.”

First Speaking Role

And the girls made such a good impression on The Undoing that they managed to finagle something every extra must dream of. Kidman laughed, “And then one day they came home and said, ‘We got a line!’” So the star was enormously proud of her daughters for graduating from unspeaking extras to extras with dialogue.

Getting Behind The Camera

The star also revealed that one of her girls may have a burgeoning passion for a career behind the camera. She explained that Sunday, “wants to be a filmmaker and she makes films every weekend.” Unfortunately for Faith, though, Sunday seems reluctant to cast her little sister in her movies. 

Getting Fired

“The little one is battling to get in them, but she had a tantrum and wouldn’t say the lines,” laughed Kidman. “I keep vouching for Faith, saying, ‘She’s a good actress. Put her in one of your films!’” The Oscar winner even told The BINGE guide that she found herself on the wrong side of director Sunday. She admitted jokingly, “And actually, I got fired last weekend.” 

Lessons From The Best

Kidman must have thick skin, though, as in 2019 a source told Closer Weekly that she had begun to give her daughters at-home acting lessons. According to the insider, the girls were bitten by the acting bug after Big Little Lies and The Undoing, so Kidman began to foster that passion. And who better for them to learn from than their Academy Award-winning mom?

Private Training

“They’re serious about following in Nicole’s footsteps and she’ll do everything she can to get them to where they want to be,” explained the source to Closer Weekly. “Nicole has been talking about enrolling them in acting classes but for now, she’s realized that she can teach them herself! She’s giving them lessons at home, and they love every second of it.”

A Time For Bonding

But the benefits of the home lessons went beyond the girls improving their acting skills. The source believed the lessons actually brought the family closer together. They said, “The fact that Faith and Sunday are so interested in this makes Nicole feel closer to them and even though they’re still young, she’s happy to help launch them into the spotlight.”