In surprising celebrity news, Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban have called it quits after nearly two decades of marriage. The separation sparked a wave of speculation about what led to their split. After 20 years together and two teenage daughters, fans naturally have questions—but according to insiders, the star of The Hours is handling the heartbreak with calm and grace, but had one major dread.
The Best Actress Oscar winner filed for divorce in Nashville on September 30, one day after reports surfaced that she and Urban had separated earlier in the summer. The Big Little Lies star was reportedly “stressed” about the impending media attention surrounding her marriage’s end, and an unnamed source told People that Kidman had been bracing for the moment the news broke. The insider alleges:
She’s been stressed because she knew the separation would eventually become public and she was dreading it.
Tom Cruise, which began on the set of a film they starred in together, was a 1990s dominating headline, and she has since spoken about how that experience shaped her perspective on love and resilience. Now, that same sense of openness seems to be guiding her once more. Though her split from Keith Urban marks the end of a long-running Hollywood marriage, the actress is reportedly focused on the future and her family.
Tension between the couple may have surfaced earlier in the year. During a summer radio interview, Urban was asked directly about his wife’s on-screen intimacy with younger co-stars, specifically Zac Efron, her co-star in A Family Affair. Before the host could finish the question, the Zoom call with the singer abruptly disconnected. Around the same time, when Nicole Kidman was asked in a separate interview about the idea of working on a TV project with her husband, she quipped, “No… our life is a show.” It wasn’t exactly the response of someone eager to blur the lines between work and marriage—and, in hindsight, may have hinted at the strain behind the scenes.
Professionally, the actress remains as busy as ever. The Others star recently wrapped filming on Practical Magic 2, and she is expected to return for Lioness Season 3 (available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription). Meanwhile, Urban has kept his own career rolling, continuing his current tour on the country music circuit.