This Leaves Me Exposed and Vulnerable

Filmmaker Halina Reijn’s sex-positive erotic thriller *Babygirl*, starring Nicole Kidman in a characteristically bold performance, has seemingly shifted the atmosphere at the Venice Film Festival.

*Babygirl* received rapturous applause during its first press screenings in Italy on Friday morning. The film’s many sexual moments and nuanced themes sparked animated discussions among festivalgoers along the Lido. The awards buzz surrounding Kidman’s performance has officially begun, bolstering the commercial winning streak for A24, the production company behind the film, which is slated for U.S. release on December 20.

*Babygirl* features Kidman as a high-powered CEO who risks her career and family for a torrid affair with her much younger intern, played by Harris Dickinson (*Triangle of Sadness*, *Iron Claw*). The film explores power dynamics, female gratification, and the importance of open communication around intimacy. Antonio Banderas co-stars as Kidman’s sweet, age-appropriate husband Jakob, providing a witty counterpoint to her rising tensions.

Press materials describe *Babygirl* as a film that delves into the tender, wickedly funny, and romantically unexpected places repressed feelings can lead. According to Kidman, the experience of debuting the film before an audience left her feeling exposed and vulnerable yet proud.

“This definitely leaves me exposed and vulnerable and frightened,” Kidman said. “But making it with these people here, it was delicate, intimate, and very, very deep.”

She expressed a mix of nervousness and pride. “Right now we’re all a bit nervous, so I’m like, I hope my hands aren’t shaking, but at the same time, I’m really proud to be at a festival like this, and to be forging ahead with films that are still being made—particularly with women at the helm.”

Kidman acknowledged that while she has worked on numerous projects revolving around sex, *Babygirl* offered something new, especially with a female director at the helm.

“I’ve worked with so many directors, but I haven’t worked with a woman on this subject matter,” Kidman said. “When you’re talking to a woman director and she’s like, ‘O.K., let’s work on this orgasm together’—I’m saying that bluntly, but you’re not going to say that with a guy. [Halina] was always so loving towards all of us, to Antonio, to Harris, to me, to Sophie, all of us. It was just a very warm environment to work in.”

Kidman also praised her male co-stars, Dickinson and Banderas, for their collaborative spirit during the film’s erotic scenes.

“[They] were like, yes, we will come and be there with you and be your partners in this storytelling, but we’re not the center of the story. I love them for being there with all their openness. They were so generous to us,” she added.

Reijn made her U.S. debut with the Gen Z slasher satire *Bodies Bodies Bodies* (2022), also produced by A24. However, *Babygirl* marks a return to the more erotic tones of her first feature, the 2019 Dutch drama *Instinct*, which explored an illicit relationship between a prison therapist and an incarcerated sex offender.

In an interview with *The Hollywood Reporter*, Reijn said *Babygirl* was explicitly inspired by the sexual thrillers of the 1990s, particularly those by Paul Verhoeven. “I was incredibly inspired by all the sexual thrillers of the 90s,” she explained. “*Basic Instinct*, *Fatal Attraction*, *9 1/2 Weeks*, *Indecent Proposal*, not only because they entertained me at the time, but also because I felt really seen by them, weirdly, even though they were all directed by men and had a sometimes not-too-friendly view of women.”

Reijn, who was an actress in the Netherlands before becoming a director, said her experiences performing and working with Verhoeven in a supporting role on his film *Black Book* directly influenced her creative process for *Babygirl*.

“Paul Verhoeven always told me I could only make a movie if I had a specific question,” she explained in a statement by A24. “For this story, I wondered: Are we animals or are we civilized? Can we make peace with the animal inside of us? Is it possible for the different parts of ourselves to coexist and, in turn, for us to love our whole selves without shame?”

*Babygirl* will make its official world premiere at Venice’s Sala Grande cinema Friday evening. Later, A24 is hosting a celebratory event at the iconic Hotel Cipriani, which has already become the hottest ticket on the Lido.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter