Nicole Kidman opened up about her decision to file for divorce from Keith Urban after nearly two decades of marriage.
“I’ve approached my whole life like that,” Kidman, 59, told British Vogue in an interview published Thursday, August 13, of her “feelings first” mentality. “That’s just who I am. I don’t overthink things and I’m probably not that analytical.”
Kidman reflected on being “far more feeling-centred” when it comes to making both personal and professional decisions.
“I lead with my heart. I just go, ‘OK, what do I feel here? I’ll give it a go.’ It throws people, because I think they think I’ll be far more measured and I’m not,” she noted. “I can still approach things intellectually, but my desire is not to be ruled by my head.”
Kidman continued: “I’ve always wanted to live a well-examined life, so what does that entail? Trying things, making mistakes, failing, getting back up, moving on, embracing love, staying open, keeping the heart open and the possibilities.”
The actress acknowledged that 2026 has not been an easy year while navigating her major breakup.
“But at the same time I’m like, ‘OK, I didn’t expect this. I had a different view of what my life was going to be, but this is what it is now,’” she recalled. “You make all these plans and you have all these ideas of what it’s all going to be like and then it’s … not. You have to adjust. You adapt. The future, it’s completely unknown to me right now … Strange.”
Us confirmed in September 2025 that Kidman and Urban, 58, had split after 19 years of marriage. The former couple met in 2005 following her divorce from Tom Cruise.
After one year of dating, Kidman and Urban got married in 2006. They expanded their family in 2008 with daughter Sunday Rose. Two years later, Kidman and Urban welcomed daughter Faith via surrogate. (Kidman is also the mother of daughter Isabella and son Connor, whom she adopted with Cruise, 63.)
Kidman and Urban finalized their divorce in January. Docs obtained by Us at the time named Kidman as the primary parent of their two children.
“There was a point where I was very fearful and deeply vulnerable, which is exposing,” Kidman told British Vogue about her new normal. “And then at the same time [I’m] going, ‘Well, I can either really not confront it and just curl up, or I can just go forward with an enormous amount of hope.’”
While discussing her split, Kidman gave credit to “so many older women in my life who are incredible mentors.”
“I had my mother and then I have another woman who sort of helped raise me since I was 16. Part of the way they approach life was sometimes [to say to me]: ‘Nicole, you just got to take it on the chin,’” she shared. “Once you accept that, instead of going, ‘Well, that’s not fair or it’s unjust,’ you go, ‘Well, yes, actually it isn’t fair. Because things are not fair.’”
Kidman added: “I know my character. I know my talent. I know who I am. If I make a mistake and it doesn’t connect, or something goes wrong in my life where it’s humiliating, it’s OK. Other people have had that and that’s OK. Take the onus off it.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Kidman said her focus was on her family.
“It’s an extraordinary purpose. Everything else is not important. These kids now, that’s what we drop everything for,” she concluded. “It’s OK, we’re here. You’ve got people who love you, who are going to hold your hand and get through it.”
