Nicole Kidman, 58, says she used to hide the features that now make her feel powerful.
In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar published Friday, the actor spoke about how she’s learned to embrace the things she once saw as flaws, including her complexion and tall frame.
“My fair skin. I used to hate it. It’s still not my favorite thing, but I appreciate it because it’s very good on film, so I use it that way,” Kidman told Harper’s Bazaar.
The “Babygirl” star added that her height was another thing she learned to appreciate.
“I’m lucky to be tall and I have so much leeway with what I eat because there’s so many more places for it to go! There’s not a small gene in our family. I mean, we are all giants,” Kidman said.
Both her daughters are 5’10”, while she and her sister are each 5’11”, she said.
“I used to grapple with that and kind of twist my hip down and pretend I was smaller,” Kidman said. “Now, I put my shoulders back, and I stand up, and I just own it.”
Still, there is a part of her that wishes she were a few inches shorter so she could look up to someone, since it’s a more flattering angle on camera, she added.
Appearance aside, Kidman says the “best part” of growing older is all the experiences she’s accumulated.
“So you go, ‘Oh, I’ve been here before. I actually know how to handle this now.’ Or, ‘Maybe I haven’t been in this place, but I’ve experienced something similar to this, and I do know that I will get through it.’ There’s something to knowing that no matter how painful, or how difficult, or how devastating something is, there is a way through,” Kidman said.
Even when something feels overwhelming, things will eventually get better, she said.
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“You are going to have to feel it, and it’s going to feel insurmountable at times. You’re going to feel like you’re broken, but if you move gently and slowly — and it can take an enormous amount of time — it does pass,” Kidman said.
In September, Kidman filed for divorce from her husband, Keith Urban. They married in June 2006 and share two daughters.
A representative for Kidman did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by Business Insider outside regular hours.
Kidman joins a wave of public figures who are speaking candidly about what aging has taught them.
In April, Melinda French Gates said she no longer cares if people don’t like her.
“I deserve to be where I am in life. Like, I’ve worked really hard to get here, and I know myself. If people don’t like me or they don’t like what I’m saying, I’m kind of at the point in life where I’m like, ‘Take it or leave it,'” French Gates said. “Like if I’m not your cup of tea, that’s OK.”
Her self-confidence could be a product of growing older, she added: “Maybe that comes with being 60.”
In July, Heidi Klum said she doesn’t think aging is anything to be ashamed of.
“I don’t have this age-shaming or body-shaming thing. I feel like everyone should do what they want to do. I like to run around sexy — even now at 52,” she said.
