Nicole Kidman Reveals What Happened in Venice the Night She Lost Her Mother

Clear Facts

• Nicole Kidman learned of her mother Janelle’s death moments before accepting the best actress award at the Venice Film Festival in September 2024
• The actress was alone in Venice without her husband Keith Urban or children when she received the devastating news
• Kidman now plans to become a death doula, inspired by her mother’s experience and the need for compassionate end-of-life care

Nicole Kidman shared deeply personal reflections on one of the most devastating moments of her life during a recent appearance at HISTORYTalks 2026, the live speaker series organized by the History Channel. The 58-year-old actress spoke candidly about learning of her mother’s death just before what should have been a career triumph.

“I’d won best actress at Venice Film Festival. This seems to be such a common theme through my life,” Kidman said during her Saturday appearance. “I was about to go on stage, and I found out my mother had died. I went right back to the room in Venice, got into bed and was completely devastated.”

The actress, who had been set to accept the best actress award for her performance in “Babygirl,” instead found herself grappling with unimaginable grief in a foreign city. She recalled feeling as if she didn’t know how she would be able to continue on without her mom, noting her mother “was so much a part of my existence.”

“The idea of being there at that particular moment was harrowing,” Kidman added.

The “Big Little Lies” star described her attempts to leave Venice immediately after receiving the news, recounting a desperate late-night journey through the Italian city’s famous canals. The experience became even more overwhelming as she tried to navigate her grief alone.

“I remember getting into a boat in the canal, and literally at night trying to find my way to the airport, and then turning around and going, I can’t even do this,” she said. “And then went back into the bed, and I was alone. My husband wasn’t there. My children weren’t there. I’d gone to win an award. What should have been a beautiful thing, ended up with that. But there is the contrast of life.”

Having endured this tragic experience in isolation, Kidman now views it as a testament to her inner strength. She says she tells people “that’s when I know I’m resilient” and that she “can survive pretty much anything.”

Kidman’s mother, Janelle, died in September 2024 at the age of 84. The loss has profoundly shaped the Academy Award-winning actress’s perspective on end-of-life care and the importance of compassionate support during life’s final chapter.

In a recent appearance at a private school’s Silk Speaker Series, Kidman revealed plans to become a death doula, a decision directly inspired by her mother’s passing and the challenges her family faced in providing adequate care.

“As my mother was passing, she was lonely, and there was only so much the family could provide,” Kidman explained. “Between my sister and I, we have so many children and our careers and our work, and wanting to take care of her because my father wasn’t in the world anymore, and that’s when I went, ‘I wish there was these people in the world that were there to sit impartially and just provide solace and care.'”

The actress shares two daughters — Sunday Rose, 17, and Faith Margaret, 15 — with her husband Keith Urban, while her sister Antonia has six children. Balancing career demands with family responsibilities made her mother’s final days particularly challenging, highlighting the need for professional end-of-life support.

Throughout her career, Kidman has spoken frequently about her close bond with her mother, crediting Janelle with instilling in her the determination to pursue her dreams. In a previous interview, she reflected on her mother’s influence and sacrifices.

“She carved her own path and wanted her daughters to have the same opportunity to carve their own paths,” Kidman told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“Mom didn’t necessarily get the career that she wanted, but she was determined that her daughters would have opportunities that were equal,” she added. “That’s given me my life. And she gave me my life, she and my dad.”

Now, Kidman is following in her mother’s footsteps as a supportive parent, encouraging her daughter Sunday Rose in her budding modeling career. The teenager made her runway debut at Paris Fashion Week in 2025, walking for Miu Miu, with her famous mother cheering her on.

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