Nicole Kidman admitted she had an unexpected reaction when she discovered her father’s dead body, and said she channeled that moment for a scene in “Expats.”
The famous actress said her real-life experience influenced a morgue-scene in the show, during an Emmys For Your Consideration event, Sunday, according to People. Kidman reportedly said when she saw the body of her late father, Anthony Kidman, the trauma kicked in and she wasn’t able to control her emotions.
“Because it was so devastating when I saw his body … and I had the most awful reaction, which was I started to shake and laugh,” she said, the outlet reported. “My mom looked at me and she actually had to slap my face and say, ‘Nicole, snap out of it,’ because I was so short-circuited in my brain.”
Nicole Kidman attends the 49th AFI Life Achievement Award Tribute Gala in Los Angeles, California, U.S., April 27, 2024. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
Kidman admitted she was “so ashamed to talk about it, but at the same time I go, ‘But it’s real.’ And it’s based in the deepest love and not being able to handle a situation,” as she explained how she felt about her own response to her father’s death, according to People.
Her father died Sept. 12, 2014 at the age of 75. Reports indicated he suffered a suspected heart attack and fell, while staying at a hotel in Singapore. She noted that her mother had to try hard to get her to stop shaking and laughing, while she stood staring at her father’s deceased body, People reported.
“She said, many times … ‘Snap out of it,'” Kidman said, according to People.
The famous actress reportedly admitted she channeled that traumatic moment for a scene in “Expats,” in which her character reacts to identifying her child’s body in a morgue.
“When we go to the morgue when we’re told our son is there … I just said, ‘I’m gonna try something because this is actually from my own life’ — not where I went to a morgue, but when my father passed away, and I laughed,” Kidman said, the outlet reported.
Nicole Kidman reacts during the 49th AFI Life Achievement Award Tribute Gala at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California, U.S., April 27, 2024. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
She described her real-life response to seeing her father’s deceased body, as being “very weird and strange,” and lauded the show’s director, Lulu Wang, for allowing her to infuse that real response into her performance, according to People. Kidman reportedly said fans resonated with the raw moment, and connected with it by sharing their own, real experiences. (RELATED: Family Defends Decision To Display Corpse In Nightclub)
“So many people have come up to me subsequently and gone, ‘Yeah, I’ve had it,’ where you start to shake and instead of tears rolling, you are quivering with this weird laughter. It’s awful. Awful,” Kidman said, the outlet reported.