Nicole Kidman: Nic at Twilight

Q: How close to death have you gotten?

A: I've driven on the wrong side of the road, barely nicking the car in front of me. I've been with my mother when she had breast cancer. I was 17 when she went through chemo. I learned massage therapy to help her through radiation. She's still alive and I'm very, very close to her.

Q: At 17 you went to Amsterdam with a boyfriend, but came back quickly. Why?

A: I ran out of money. I went with three grand and a Dutch boyfriend. We went to Paris, stayed in a tiny attic room, could barely afford bread and cheese. But boy it was so romantic. We went to Italy, to Florence, and it snowed, which it hadn't done in 18 years.

Q: How many times have you been in love in your life?

A: Three.

Q: And with the other two, did you get hurt at the end?

A: One of them, yeah. No, twice really.

Q: Do you keep in touch with old boyfriends?

A: Yes, I'm friends with all my exes.

Q: When did boys enter your consciousness?

A: At about 14, I really started to like them. It's wonderful when that happens. Those tingles are priceless.

Q: Did older guys used to hit on you?

A: Yes. I spent two years with a man who was 13 years older than me. I also dated another who was 17 years older than me. I was 17. My parents were quite open.

Q: Coming from a close family, why did you feel the need to leave school and country at 17?

A: Because I got a job and I wanted to be an actress. I knew I wasn't going to go to college. I wanted to cut loose. I was a nightmare to my parents. I lied to them. There was a time when my mother said, "I can't live in the same house with her." It wasn't all roses. But that also put me in good stead [for the future]. Because I grew up in a family that yelled a lot, I don't cower [now]. People would lose their tempers in our house, things would be thrown, and an hour later we'd sit around and have a laugh.

Q: As a kid, did you ever read anything you weren't supposed to? Like Henry Miller?

A: Yeah, of course, you're a kid, that's what you do. I read Lady Chatterley's Lover. But my mother would bring home films from the school of nursing when we were 12 to show us sex. We would have to sit there and look at, in detail, everything. My parents overeducated me. My sister and I were so embarrassed. And my dad would take me to modern dance, where the dancers were totally naked. I'd be sitting next to my dad when I was nine or ten and fully grown men would be walking around naked.

Q: Did your dad say anything about it?

A: Just to accept it for what it was. "Wasn't that artistic and wonderful and did you enjoy it?"

Q: Do you know the titles of your father's books?

A: Time Management. Managing Love and Hate. He's written five.

Q: Have you read them?

A: Yeah. He's a great father, I can call him at three in the morning and he's there for me.

Q: Did either of your parents warn you against marrying Tom at such an early age?

A: Yes, my mom. She said, "Hold on, hold on."

Q: Why did you want to get married at 23 rather than just live with Tom?

A: Because I loved him.

Q: Whose idea was it to get married?

A: His.

Q: Do other women come on to Tom when you're around?

A: Not that I'm aware of. I used to get jealous early on, but I don't anymore at all. That's what Eyes Wide Shut is about, jealousy and sexual obsession.

Q: Has marriage changed you?

A: Yeah, I would hope so. I trust more. I didn't really trust before Tom.

Q: Did you ever consider using his last name?

A: No. I was raised by a strong feminist mother. I'm not opposed to it in the sense that I love being a part of his life. I just don't need to carry his name around.

Q: You've said that Tom is more romantic than you--is that still true?

A: I've been going through a pretty romantic stage lately.

Q: Was it Tom who wanted you to learn self-defense?

A: That was a birthday present from Tom. But I had to guarantee that I'd never use it on him.

Q: What kind of gifts have you gotten him over the years?

A: We have a thing now where we're not going to buy each other expensive gifts. We write each other letters now.

Q: Do you save all your letters?

A: Yes, in a letter box.

Q: What film of Tom's do you like best?

A: Born on the Fourth of July is my favorite. It made me fall in love with him.

Q: Was that before you met him?

A: No, I met him, and then he said, go and see this movie. When I saw it I thought, my God. It's so extraordinary to see someone go to those places in himself.

Q: You sounded some regret about having done Far and Away with Tom so quickly after Days of Thunder.

A: I regretted the way I was viewed as just Tom Cruise's wife. In terms of the film and the character, I was very appreciative. The movie was treated harshly.

Q: Do you feel you're still perceived as Tom Cruise's wife?

A: I don't know, what do you think? Now I'm comfortable with being Tom Cruise's wife. [Laughs] Then I was trying to have my own identity. I'm sure that happens to a lot of people--I was just experiencing it in a public way.

Q: Did Tom talk to you about dealing with your celebrity?

A: Yeah. I'm pretty open--I'm Australian, I'll talk. And I'm also a woman and women tend to be more open. I will talk about personal things--far more than a lot of my male friends. But you talk a lot about yourself, you start to feel self-indulgent. As my mom would say, "Oh, shut up!"

Q: How often do you sue or contemplate suing publications that print lies about you?

A: We did it with a German magazine and we're in the process of doing it with an English one now. We do it because we turned the other cheek for so many years. Finally you go, "No more: we've got the money and we're going to go to court--every time." I tell you, it changes them--they think twice before they go and print some scurrilous gossip. I want to protect who I am in relation to my kids. I don't want them to have to go to school and defend us.

Pages: 1 2 3 4