Nicole Kidman Skips Venice Film Festival Award After Shocking News Of Her Mother's Death

Nicole Kidman reportedly had to miss a huge part of the Venice Film Festival, where she won best actress, due to the death of her mother, Janelle Ann Kidman.

In past interviews, Kidman discussed her deep bond with her mother, describing her as a lifelong inspiration who shaped her career and life.

Nicole Kidman's mother's death comes as she receives rave reviews for her role in the erotic thriller, "Babygirl."

On Saturday, Kidman, who had been named best actress at the Venice Film Festival for her performance in "Babygirl," had to forgo the event to be with her family and mourn the loss of her mother.

According to the Daily Mail, the news of her mother's passing was shared in a statement read by the film's director, Halina Reijn.

Kidman said, "I arrived in Venice and found out shortly after that my beautiful, brave mother, Janelle Ann Kidman, has just passed. I'm in shock, and I have to go to my family, but this award is for her. She shaped me and made me."

She continued, "I am beyond grateful that I get to say her name to all of you through Halina, the collision of life and art is heart-breaking, and my heart is broken. We love you all."

A spokesperson for the actress confirmed the loss to Fox News Digital, noting that the family is "heartbroken and asks for privacy at this time."

Kidman touched on her mother's health challenges in a January 2022 interview on NPR's "Fresh Air" podcast.

She mentioned that they had the chance to visit the Art Gallery of New South Wales after hours to see the Matisse: Life & Spirit exhibition, calling the experience a "soothing balm."

"We're down here primarily to take care of my mother and to have her surrounded by her grandchildren," she shared.

Kidman continued, "So luckily yesterday, even though Omicron is raging through this country, we were able to take her into the gallery after hours and show her the Matisse exhibit, which, coming from a mother who's raised me in the arts, it was soothing balm. Matisse was soothing balm last night."

In the same interview, Kidman reflected on her bond with her mother, saying, "I'm at the place where I'm being given the chance to view the world, because of how close we are, my mom is giving me the chance to view the world through an 81-year-old woman's eyes."

The actress shared at the time that it was "beneficial" because her mother was so cognizant, noting that "she has every brain faculty available, so she hasn't lost anything. She hasn't lost any memory, which is fascinating, and she's extremely bright."

Kidman continued: "She's giving me access because she's also very direct and very honest, and so I'm getting access to the world through her eyes, my mother's eyes, so therefore a part of me almost at 80. It's her perspective. There's many different 80-year-old perspectives, but it's her perspective, and her particular path, but I'm drinking it in and learning."

In 2020, Kidman spoke to the Sydney Morning Herald about how her mother has been a constant source of inspiration and motivated her to pursue her dreams.

"She's given me the fire to pursue the career I have because I've always wanted to please her," Kidman said. "But she also carved her path and wanted her daughters to have the same opportunity to carve their paths."

She further explained, "Mom didn't necessarily get the career that she wanted, but she was determined that her daughters would have opportunities that were equal. That's given me my life. And she gave me my life, she and my dad."

At the Venice Film Festival, Kidman opened up about feeling "vulnerable" while filming several intimate scenes for her new erotic thriller.

The role marks a departure for Kidman, who hasn't taken on anything similar since "Eyes Wide Shut," the sensual thriller she starred in with then-husband Tom Cruise 25 years ago.

Kidman emphasized that having an intimacy coordinator and a closed set was crucial for creating the sex scenes, which are central to the narrative of her character's existential crisis and eventual resolution through a provocative sexual journey.

"I think this film is obviously, yes, about sex, but it's about desire, it's about your inner thoughts, it's about secrets, it's about marriage, it's about truth, power, consent," the actress explained, per the Daily Mail.

"This is one woman's story and this is I hope a very liberating story," Kidman continued. "It's told by a woman through her gaze. It's Halina's (Reijn's) script, she wrote it and she directed, and that made it unique that suddenly I was going to be in the hands of a woman with this material. It was very dear to our shared instincts and very, very freeing."