Thanks to Babygirl, Nicole Kidman just crossed a major box office milestone for the first time in nearly two decades. The 2024 release sees Kidman as CEO Romy Mathis as she attempts an affair with Harris Dickinson’s Samuel. Babygirl has earned exceptional reviews, with Screen Rant‘s Alex Harrison describing it as “fascinating to watch” and “calibrated exactly right to its time“. It was officially released on December 25, 2024, and has already earned back its $20 million budget.

This movie is a massive success for Kidman, no matter how its run ends. After all, for the first time since Australia (2008), Kidman has earned over $20 million domestically. Her latest movie currently sits at $21.7 million at the domestic box office, as per The Numbers. While she has achieved that total with other projects, including both the Aquaman movies and Paddington (2014), none of those works saw her in a leading role. It is her first return to relative success as a leading actor.

What Babygirl’s Success Means For Nicole Kidman

She Could Resume Her Role As A Leading Star

Kidman has enjoyed a long career in Hollywood since her first on-screen appearances in 1983. She earned five Academy Award nominations, bringing home the award for Actress for 2002’s The Hours. She also won two Emmy Awards for Big Little Lies, six Golden Globe Awards, and a BAFTA. Kidman’s best movies and shows generally showcase her exceptional talent. Unfortunately, she has not taken many mainstream leading roles in recent years. While she has appeared in many box office successes, few star Kidman:

Title
Role
Starring?
Domestic Box Office
Global Box Office

Aquaman (2018)
Queen Atlanna
No
$335 million
$1.1 billion

Aquaman and the Lost Kindom (2023)
Queen Atlanna
No
$124 million
$434 million

Happy Feet (2006)
Norma Jean
No
$198 million
$385 million

The Golden Compass (2007)
Marisa Coulter
Yes
$70 million
$367 million

Batman Forever (1995)
Dr. Chase Meridian
No
$184 million
$337 million

Paddington (2015)
Millicent Clyde
No
$76 million
$250 million

Australia (2008)
Lady Sarah Ashley
Yes
$50 million
$215 million

Just Go With It (2011)
Devlin Adams
No
$103 million
$215 million

The Others (2001)
Grace Stewart
Yes
$97 million
$215 million

Panic Room (2002)
Unnamed Girlfriend
No
$95 million
$196 million

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Of her top 10 highest-grossing movies, Kidman has starred in only three of them. The vast majority of her box office successes come from movies in which she took a less prominent role. Babygirl represents an opportunity for Kidman to prove herself, yet again, as a star. Babygirl‘s limited cast is not altogether well-known domestically, so Kidman can use it as evidence that she was the box office draw. That does mean, however, that she needs to see it succeed.

Our Take On Babygirl’s Box Office

It Still Needs To Improve

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Babygirl‘s potential success is still an open question. It will likely need approximately $50 million to achieve a profit, but positive word-of-mouth could help. Unfortunately, though critics enjoy the movie, it currently sits at just 48% on the Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter. That indicates that audiences hold a considerable disdain for the project. Critics have offered a 77% Tomatometer score, but even that is not exceptional. It is still doing relatively well at the box office, given its limited marketing, and Kidman breaking her streak is notable enough.