Actress Nicole Kidman has had a long and wildly successful career, spanning both film and TV. During that time she's taken a number of gigs in superhero projects, most notably Batman Forever and the Aquaman franchise (both of which are streaming with a Max subscription). She recently explained why she took those gigs, and clarified it wasn't for the money.
Those of us who have been watching the DC movies in order have seen as Kidman went from damsel in distress in Batman Forever to an Atlantean queen and warrior in Aquaman. While speaking with L'Officiel, she spoke about what drew her to these roles. Regarding her time playing Chase Meridian in Joel Schumacher's Batman Forever, she said:
Everyone's like, ’Why are you doing that?’ I'm like, ‘Because I get to kiss Batman’ The thing people don't understand is, it's not about the check. A lot of the mainstream big blockbusters that I do are hopefully different.
Points were made. It sounds like it was a bucket list moment for Kidman to kiss Val Kilmer's Batman, with or without his signature cowl. So she signed on for Shumacher's first Batman movie, playing journalist and love interest to Bruce Wayne, Chase Meridian.
Kidman makes her entrance in the very first scene of that live-action Batman movie, so it's not like she had a small presence in the blockbuster. Although she did fall into the trop of being the damsel in distress, as she's kidnapped by Jim Carrey and Tom Lee Jones' Riddler and Two-Face during the final act.
Her time in the DCEU as Queen Atlanna was different, as she got a number of thrilling action sequences, especially the one-shot prologue battle of the first Aquaman movie. It turns out that she originally thought it would be a scary movie, and was eager to work with horror legend James Wan. In her words:
I’d really wanted to work with him in horror.
While this still hasn't happened yet, they were able to work together on both of the Aquaman movies, with the sequel The Lost Kingdom serving as the final chapter in the DCEU as a whole. Hopefully Kidman and Wan will be able to collaborate on a bonafide horror movie sooner rather than later.
It certainly seem like Kidman's acting choices haven't been motivated by money, and are instead based on what types of projects and directors she'd like to work with. This is likely why she's had such a long career, which has extended into producing acclaimed TV shows like HBO's Big Little Lies and The Undoing.
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Nicole Kidman can be seen in Batman Forever and both Aquaman movies by streaming them on Max. For now, check the 2025 movie release dates to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor
Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.
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