Nicole Mary Kidman, AC (born June 20, 1967) is an Academy Award-winning Hawaiian-born Australian actress. She has also been a model, singer, and is currently also a UN Citizen of the World award-winning humanitarian and a UNIFEM and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. In 2006, Kidman was made a Companion of the Order of Australia, Australia's highest civilian honor.Stafford, Annabel: Kidman and the Kennedys honoured for their service, The Age, April 14, 2007. In 2006, she was also the highest-paid actress in the motion picture industry.

Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm. Her performances in films such as Days Of Thunder, To Die For (1995), Moulin Rouge! (2001), and The Hours (2002) won her critical acclaim. In 2003, Kidman received her star on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood, California. She is also known for her marriage to Tom Cruise and her current marriage to country musician Keith Urban. As a result of being born to Australian parents in Hawaii, Kidman has dual citizenship of Australia and the United States.

Early life and family

Kidman was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her father, Dr Antony David Kidman, is a biochemist, clinical psychologist and author, with an office in Lane Cove, Sydney, Australia. Her mother, Janelle Ann (née Glenny), is a nursing instructor who edits her husband's books and was a member of the Women's Electoral Lobby. These days Kidman lives in Burwood where she owns a relatively small house. At the time of Kidman's birth, her father was a visiting fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health of the United States. The family returned to Australia when Kidman was four and her parents now live on Sydney's North Shore. Kidman has a younger sister, Antonia Kidman, a journalist. She has known actress Naomi Watts since they were in their teens and the two remain best friends today.

Kidman attended Lane Cove Public School and North Sydney Girls' High School. She studied at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne, at the Phillip Street Theatre in Sydney, with Naomi Watts. This was followed by the Australian Theatre for Young People.

Early career in Australia (1983–1989)

Kidman's first appearance in film came in 1983 at 15, in the Pat Wilson music video for the song "Bop Girl". By the end of the year she had a supporting role in the television series Five Mile Creek and four film roles, including BMX Bandits and Bush Christmas. During the 1980s, she appeared in several Australian productions, including the soap opera A Country Practice, the mini-series Vietnam (1986), Emerald City (1988), and Bangkok Hilton (1989).

Breakthrough (1989–1995)