Nicole Kidman Says ‘Babygirl’ Was ‘Freeing’: ‘I Didn’t Feel Exploited’

Nicole Kidman hopes her new erotic thriller, “Babygirl,” is a “liberating story” for women, as she found it very “freeing” to make.

At the film’s Venice Film Festival press conference, Kidman spoke on the raunchy themes of the movie, saying it’s “obviously about sex, it’s about desire, it’s about your inner thoughts, it’s about secrets, it’s about marriage, it’s about truth, power, consent.”

“This is one woman’s story and this is, I hope, a very liberating story,” she continued. “It’s told through a woman’s gaze … and that’s to me what made it so unique … It was freeing.”

The buzzy A24 film sees Kidman star as a high-powered CEO who puts her career and family on the line when she begins a torrid affair with her much younger intern (played by Harris Dickinson). The film also stars Antonio Banderas, Banderas, Sophie Wilde and Esther McGregor.

Kidman said working with a woman director in Halina Reijn (“Bodies Bodies Bodies”) was key to her feeling comfortable on set.

“I knew she wasn’t going to exploit me. However anyone interprets that, I didn’t feel exploited. I felt very much a part of that,” she said. “There was enormous caretaking by all of us, we were all very gentle with each other and helped each other. It felt very authentic, protected and, at the same time, real.”

Director Reijn has worked alongside Paul Verhoeven on several movies, and said she was a “big fan of his work and wanted to do something in that space.” Unlike Verhoeven’s films, however, she wanted her erotic feature to focus on the “female gaze.”

“That doesn’t mean that the film is not also about masculinity, masculine power, control, sexuality, all those things,” she added.

In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Kidman said she was nervous about premiering the film at Venice. “I felt very exposed as an actor, as a woman, as a human being,” she said of the movie. “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?”

“All of us carry a little black box filled with taboo fantasies that we might never share with anyone,” said Reijn in the press notes for “Babygirl.” “I am fascinated by the duality of human nature, and this film is an attempt to shine a light, without judgement, on the opposing forces that make up our personalities. To me, feminism is the freedom to study a woman’s vulnerability, love, shame, rage and inner beast.”

After Venice, “Babygirl” is due to have its North American premiere at the Toronto Film Festival before releasing on Dec. 25.