Nicole Kidman Says Late Mom Was 'Always the Smartest Person in the Room': 'She Would See Through Everything'

Mar. 15, 2025

Janelle Ann Kidman and Nicole Kidman in Sydney on Dec. 5, 2018.Photo:Lisa Maree Williams/Getty

Lisa Maree Williams/Getty

Nicole Kidmanis remembering momJanelle Ann Kidman’s best qualities nearly three months afterher death.

“And she’d always say to me that I was always looking at the world with rose-colored glasses,” the Oscar winner continued.

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“My sister and I along with our family want to thank you for the outpouring of love and kindness we have felt this week,” the Australian actressbegan in a statementon Instagram five days later.

Her tribute included threephotos of her mother. The first was a solo portrait of a younger Janelle, while the two that followed were family pictures in which both Nicole and her younger sisterAntoniaappeared.

“Every message we have received from those who loved and admired our Mother has meant more to us than we will ever be able to express. Thank you from our whole family for respecting our privacy as we take care of each other,” Nicole concluded.

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Nicole Kidman and her mom Janelle Ann Kidman in Sydney, May 2001.James Morgan/Shutterstock

James Morgan/Shutterstock

In her interview withTHR, Nicole said her mom encouraged both her and her sister, who is a lawyer and former journalist, to pursue their professional goals.

“She loved my career,” said thePerfect Couplestar. “She’d go, ‘That was very good,’ or, ‘The writing on this wasn’t good.’ When she said something was good, you just sort of almost fell at her feet.”

Nicole also recalled going to the opera with her mother during her childhood, explaining that Janelle “knew so much about art.”

“I came from that very academic home where it was like, ‘Well, where’s your degree?’ " she said. “And I’m like, ‘I got my degree in acting.’ We would read novels and then we would discuss them, or we would discuss an art exhibition.”

source: people.com