Nicole Kidman fires back at journalist over ‘sexist’ question

Nicole Kidman has blasted a journalist for asking a “sexist” question about her former marriage to Tom Cruise during a press conference for her latest film Being the Ricardos.

The Aussie superstar was discussing her role as Lucille Ball and the relationship between Ball and her husband Dezi Arnaz telling reporters sometimes you “fall in love with someone who isn’t going to be the person you spend the rest of your life with”.

It was then that a journalist with The Guardian attempted to compare the marriage of Arnaz and Ball with Kidman’s marriage to Tom Cruise and questioned whether the actress was making a subtle reference to her previous marriage. Kidman was quick to shut down the line of questioning.

“Oh, my God, no, no. Absolutely not. No. I mean, that’s, honestly, so long ago that that isn’t in this equation. So no,” she said.

“And I would ask not to be pigeonholed that way, either. It feels to me almost sexist, because I’m not sure anyone would say that to a man. And at some point, you go, ‘Give me my life. In its own right.”

Kidman met Cruise in late 1989, shortly before they began filming for Days of Thunder, and married on Christmas Eve of 1990. In 2001, the couple’s spokesperson announced their separation.

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The heated exchange came as Kidman continues her press tour for the Lucille Ball biopic Being The Ricardos which explores some of the darker elements of the couple’s life including marriage troubles and racial barriers the two contended with. Kidman has previously stated, to Variety, that the film is not a remake of the comedic series but a dramatic exploration of the behind-the-scenes relationship of the two leading stars.

“Everyone thinks we’re remaking the I Love Lucy show, and it’s so not that. It’s about Lucy and Desi and their relationship and their marriage. It’s very deep, actually,” she said.

“She was a trailblazer. She formed her production company. Desi was Cuban, and she had to fight to get him on the show. They had just so many things in their marriage that are so relevant today, and what she was also dealing with in terms of everything that artists deal with.”