Nicole Kidman is not only an Academy Award-winning actress, but also a global style icon, taking fashion risks that not many others take and mastering them with ease.
And, as it turns out, she’s done more than use that powerful wardrobe to land on best-dressed lists over the years.
Kidman recently spoke about what clothes mean to her in a cover interview for Vogue’s November 2025 issue.
The Australian star poses on one of this month’s three covers, the other two featuring actors Ayo Edebiri and Greta Lee.
Standing against a blue background in an obvious studio setting, Kidman faces the camera wearing a brown silk Saint Laurent slip dress by Anthony Vaccarello, with a voluminous crinoline creating a bubble-like shape underneath.
In it, Kidman talks about her relationship with fashion and its deeper meaning.
She was raised by her mother and grandmother who made her clothes since she was a child. “They would make me stand on the table and fix the hems and check the collars. And I could do embroidery,” she said.
She added that wearing dresses “makes me feel like I’m 4 years old…I feel cute, but I don’t always feel cute.”
Kidman went on to talk about her wardrobe choices, saying, “Sometimes it’s armored, sometimes it’s playful, sometimes it’s sexy. It depends on my mood. Sometimes it’s androgynous, sometimes it’s kind of messed up.”
Costume designer Catherine Martin, a friend of Kidman’s who has worked with the megastar for decades, elaborated. “When you walk the red carpet, it’s a dramatic moment. It’s incredibly scary to be under such scrutiny and expectations,” she said. “I think it’s because she’s a very shy person by nature… She’s confident in the role, no matter what role she’s playing.”
It’s understandable why Kidman would put on a bit of armor now, given her recent highly publicized split from country music singer Keith Urban, with whom she was married for 19 years and had two children together.
In fact, it appears she used her recent appearance sitting front row at Chanel during Paris Fashion Week to do just that.
Vogue caught up with Kidman on Monday afternoon as she prepared for the Chanel show in Paris, as she announced her return as a brand ambassador for the French fashion house after a 20-year hiatus. This collection marks the brand’s first collection from creative director Matthieu Blazy.
Taking a classic approach to her look, Kidman wore what on the surface appeared to be casual jeans and a white button-down. But she wasn’t just wearing jeans and a button-down.
Stylist Jason Bolden said Kidman was given two items from the collection that had appeared on the runway at the show she was about to witness.
He described the shirt as a “quintessential classic button-down” trimmed with Chanel’s iconic braided chain at the inner hem, which had “the coolness, edge and sophistication of the prettiest cashmere jeans.”
Yes, cashmere jeans.
Kidman was also shocked, saying, “I’m literally going to be wearing cashmere jeans. I never imagined cashmere jeans. So…well, here we go.”
Kidman described her latest Chanel armor as “very chic and simple. It’s understated in a way, but luxurious.”
And that’s exactly what Kidman is. Regardless of the setting, it’s cool yet dignified.
