Nicole Kidman: Worst-dressed lists are ‘nasty & misogynistic’

2017 BAFTA Awards - Arrivals

Nicole Kidman covers the new issue of The Edit. She’s promoting Big Little Lies, the HBO miniseries which Nicole produced and stars in. She’s also still campaigning for an Oscar too, of course. She’s nominated this year for Lion, although I think she knows she’s not going to win, right? I think everyone in that category knows that the Oscar is going to Viola Davis (at long f–king last). Interestingly enough, I liked this interview because Nicole directly addressed her increasingly wacky red carpet style. What I’ve always said about Nicole is that she cares very deeply about fashion and she cares about making a huge statement on the red carpet. Which is why I don’t understand her current style phase, which all too often defaults to “Miss Havisham nonsense.” Of course, she also turned up at the SAGs with two birds on her shoulders, so who knows? You can read the full Edit piece here. Some highlights:

Figuring out what she’ll wear to this year’s Oscars: “I have a sense of what I want to wear, I want it to have a real flavor of the film, but I haven’t found it.”

She just figured out she can take off her shoes at awards shows: “My feet were killing me. It was a long dress, so I said to Keith, ‘Do you think anyone will notice?’ And I just took them off. It was so much more comfortable. I love the way that a high heel looks, but the actual wearing of it is a whole different thing.”

Her red carpet style these days: “I have no problem being divisive. My eight-year-old [Sunday Rose] said, ‘You’re wearing that?’ My six-year-old [Faith Margaret] was like, ‘What’s on your shoulder?!’ I’m not a fan of ‘Worst Dressed’ things because I don’t believe in crucifying people for their individual [taste]. It just seems nasty and misogynistic, so that needs to go away. I have worked with directors who are divisive, so I’m used to [criticism], and as my husband says, ‘You don’t want to have a thick skin; that’s not a compliment’… Oh well, sticks and stones can break your bones, but names will never hurt you, right?”

Working on Big Little Lies: “One of the craziest things happened after we’d done a lot of violent scenes. When you see them in the show they’re flashes, but we needed to re-shoot them and re-shoot them so [director Jean-Marc Vallée] could get grabs of stuff. I couldn’t sleep and the next morning I went for a run to try and get some of Celeste’s energy out. I came back and I’d left my key, I couldn’t get in the door. It’s a glass door, so I got a rock and I threw the rock through the door. I’d never done anything like that before. And then I realized, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s how much I’m holding all this in, the anger, the pain.’”

Her connection to costar Zoe Kravitz: “Well, I knew Zoë because I was engaged to her father. It’s all in the family! I love Lenny; he’s a great guy.”

She is political, she swears: “My mother was part of the Women’s Electoral Lobby and would take me to hand out pamphlets when there was voting on behalf of feminism. That’s how I was raised; we’d sit in the back rooms of the WEL while they were all talking. I remember listening, sort of not understanding but understanding there was a movement happening, that as women we were powerful together, that we needed to have equality. I was teased at school for my mum being a feminist. I just said, ‘OK, it doesn’t matter. I’ll stand up for what I believe in.’”

[From The Edit]

I wish she would have used this interview to discuss her personal politics in greater detail. Like, I know she considers herself a feminist. I know she supports women within the industry and I know she supports organizations like Planned Parenthood. But there’s still a weird taint on her since she said that we need to “support” Donald Trump because he’s president. She shouldn’t be afraid to speak about how she really feels.

What else? Worst-dressed lists are misogynistic, maybe. I’m all for people letting their freak flags fly, but I think Nicole is mostly just mad that she’s no longer considered the best dressed woman on every red carpet.

2017 BAFTA Awards - Arrivals

Photos courtesy of The Edit.

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88 Responses to “Nicole Kidman: Worst-dressed lists are ‘nasty & misogynistic’”

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  1. Erinn says:

    I think the worst dressed lists would be better if they put men on them, or more frequently if any of them already do.

    I don’t know – when you’re dressed completely inappropriately for an event, you’re kind of free game within reason. Use those $100 bills to wipe your tears.

    • ElleBee says:

      I think men don’t make it on very often because they pretty much wear the same thing to every event. I agree with you though, celebs shouldn’t try to make fashion statements and then be mad when people point out how hideous and inappropriate their clothing is

      • Merry says:

        I’m sorry but no. Theres an inexcusable focus on womens appearance and thats what filters into these red carpet events. The “men are uniformly dressed” excuse falls apart constantly. For instance how is Ceelo Greens Grammy outfit not at the top of every single Worst dressed list this year? As a matter of fact how many times has a man topped any of the major worst or best dressed lists?

      • ell says:

        yeah, i agree with Merry. some men can look proper sloppy, and yet it’s only women making the list.

      • Chinoiserie says:

        Merry I don’t recall seeing men on best dressed lists any more often.

      • Merlin'sWife says:

        I think fashion in general is pretty sexist, and these lists are a by-product of that. The expectations are much higher for women than for men, so it makes sense these lists would be primarily women.

    • ctgirl says:

      I suspect that most best and worst dressed lists are written by women. Women generally dress for other women and most men don’t pick apart a women’s ensemble.

      • ElleBee says:

        That’s probably the reason as well. Men wear a variation of the same thing every time and no one (man or woman) cares about it. Women care about what other women wear.

      • Merry says:

        @ElleBee

        So at the very least, its sexist right. Plenty of men walk the red carpet in something different and they rarely get derided for not measuring up. Once again, Ceelo Green didnt show up at number 1 of any of the lists. Neither did Jared Leto or Adam Sandler last year. At best, they are considered odd in a bad ass way. Just because its women doing the tearing down doesnt mean it isnt sexist. Women are just as big propagators of misogynistic crap as guys are. We are afterall or products of the same system that reduces women to their appearance and men to their accomplishments.

    • helonearth says:

      We always see men turning up on the premieres in jeans and a t-shirt, or trainers with a suit and little, if anything, is said. When women dress down for these events its brought up in the media.

      I saw an article about a male tv presenter in Australia who wore the same suit for a year and no one noticed! That simply would not happen with a female presenter.

      Those lists are sexist.

    • Anna says:

      I say no lists at all. Gosh, it doesn’t take a reporter telling me so for me to realize Nicole Kidman has a questionable taste level and guess what, I don’t really care and it has nothing to do with her acting ability.

      • Erinn says:

        I mean, really – that’d be ideal. They’re just kind of fluff filler in magazines at this point.

      • NYGal says:

        just to play devils advocate here… but doesn’t this site critique woman’s fashion choices all the time? Maybe it’s not a formal worst dressed list, however it can garner the same results…Not that I am offended in anyway by critiquing fashion…but if your offended by lists wouldn’t you be offended by what happens here to? Just asking ?

    • Ana says:

      Worst dressed lists always have men in it, it’s just that they rarely wear something else than the standard tuxedo, so there’s not much to choose from.

  2. Kate says:

    You know what’s misogynistic and nasty? The new president you want us to support.

    • Justjj says:

      This!!! Don’t tell me to be okay with Donald Trump, and then complain that best dressed lists are sexist. Fashion is sexist. Women’s wear has always been more nuanced, restrictive, and judged more harshly than menswear. Sexist yes, but misogynistic? I’m not sure. I save ‘misogyny’ for situations, words, and behaviors, that actually cause women immediate or long term harm. I’m not sure best dressed lists fall into the category of misogyny.

  3. Megan says:

    She was engaged to Lenny Kravitz? Wow, talk about the one that got away.

    • Jayna says:

      Not really. He was caught getting chummy with some girl in a Miami club. Nicole ended the relationship after that.

      • Bridget says:

        I’m surprised how many people forgot about this relationship. It wasn’t a secret and she’s mentioned being engaged before Keith.

      • Lady D says:

        It was news to me, Bridget. Nicole was pretty much under the radar for me until she divorced Tom, then she seemed to be everywhere. She was really pretty during that period after the divorce, too.

    • camomile says:

      Jimmy Fallon was really the one who got away. 😉

      • Fiorella says:

        And that is one of my favourite videos on YouTube . Damn even married he is so choked about it! Loved seeing him speechless ! But really it was her loss because he is perfect

    • Beth says:

      Lenny is the most beautiful, sexy man in the world! Definitely a loss for her

  4. Detritus says:

    The buried lede is that Nic and Lenny dated! Another site was suggesting they were engaged at one point too.

    Imagine Nic with Lenny instead of Keith Urban…

    • Merry says:

      She was engaged to him. She has talked about it in interviews. She also dated QTip. Our girl lived her life and she lived it well.

    • PHAKSI says:

      The two of them dating was never a secret though, the engagement bit is new. What Id like to hear about is the rumour I read that Tom didnt like her and Lenny together and him being around their kids cos of his drug addiction

      • lucy2 says:

        I too remember them dating but not engaged. I had forgotten about the Zoe connection though until this interview!

    • detritus says:

      I wasn’t that big into Nicole around the Tom Cruise era, so I missed all of this!
      I love the idea of the ice queenly Nic being all up in that hot piece of Lenny. His tush, his eyes, his voooicccee.

      Do you think her style would be different?

  5. zappy says:

    I am not American, but I dont think I have any sanity left if I have president like Trump. And no, my President isnt good either, but I think Trump set the lowest standart..
    about worst dresser, males arent include because in hollywood mostly they wear tux etc, kinda boring.
    but once you look to Asian Red Carpet, sometimes males celeb also wear questionable fashion choice, and yes, they got called worst dresser too.
    so its not only for females..

    • Marley says:

      One way to fix up Hollywood red carpets would be to make the men’s dress code smart casual rather than formal. Then you’d see diversity among the men’s fashion choices.

  6. ff_oo78 says:

    Will you ever let the Trump thing go?

    What planet you live on? He is the pres. of the country whether you like it or not. What; you’ll spend the next most-likely 8 years acting like an adult toddler just b/c he was elected by a wide margin and you did not get your way? Go out and contribute. Do smthng rather than bitching about nonsensical stuff while talking about C list celebs.

    Not only the office, but the House and Senate as well they won. A large chunk of those people, who voted for him, had voted for Obama during the previous two elections.

    I did not elect him, and I disagree with his opinions about 90% of the time. But you, and people like you, need the come to your senses and act like grown ups. This is not the way to live.

    Enough.

    • Kasia says:

      He wasn’t elected by a large margin…he literally lost be 3 million votes. He didn’t even tie, lol. And that’s WITH all the cheating it’s becoming obvious he did.

      I’m kind of doubting that you’re not one of his supporters because you have the “inability to remember facts if they don’t support my worldview” thing down.

      Also, you thugs were mean as hell to Obama for 8 years. Trump is literally the dumbest and most dangerous person to ever be “elected” to anything. Hopefully your country wises up and nullifies the election as they are rumored to be thinking of doing. The world cannot survive four years of this evil man. We just can’t.

    • AreYouForReal? says:

      Yeah, no. We will not sit down and shut up and be lorded over by Emperor No Clothes. No, he did not win by a large margin. Literally 26% of the country voted for him (only 45% of eligible voters voted and most of those voted for Hillary). No, we will not “deal” and let him enact his racist, sexist, xenophobic, bigoted policy.

      Hurray to Celebitchy for keeping this horrible administration in the forefront of people’s minds EVEN as we enjoy mindless gossip about C list celebrities. You are more than free to wander over to Breitbart, where they fully support your president and twist facts to favor him.

    • Erinn says:

      Or, if you don’t like it, you can leave? I don’t see how you, or anyone else has the authority to tell people what to write on their own blog.

    • wheneight says:

      Lol people raising Hell is what literally just prevented us from having Labor Secretary who doesn’t support minimum wage this week.

    • Nic919 says:

      There are elections every four years so unless Cheeto bans elections, then 8 years is no guarantee and a lot of people are having buyers remorse one month in, so he’s not going to be reelected. The people who failed to show up to vote last time will be there voting against him in 2020, if he even makes there and doesn’t have to resign for his traitorous behaviour with Russia.

      • DiamondGirl says:

        I’m really holding out hope that SOMETHING will happen to make it stop more quickly than four years. Not violence but something that will make the Tweeto resign or just GET OUT.

      • graymatters says:

        We hold elections of some sort every two years, so his political opposition may have some more teeth by 2019. Democracy requires a healthy disagreement to function. Blind loyalty is an expression of totalitarianism.

        And equating a woman’s worth to her outward appearance is misogynistic. Best-dressed lists are nice and misogynistic; worst dressed lists are nasty and misogynistic. People can be shallow.

      • Onerous says:

        There is no way he makes it even 4 years. The man is delusional and physically unhealthy. Look at how he’s aged in just one month! He’s looking for any way out, I bet.

    • Arock says:

      No, we will not. And that’s part of the democratic process. The one benefit from this stooge being elected is the mobilization of so many in the face of lunacy. You may accept and move on, I doubt that will be the reaction of the larger population.

    • Kath says:

      Is this satire, or are you just incredibly uneducated?

      * This guy has turned your country into a global laughing stock, alienated your allies and mobilised your enemies.
      * He has disrupted the geopolitical order to the extent that war with Iran and/or China is now a very real possibility.
      * His refusal to divest himself of his businesses, and his continued quest to enrich his family via the office, is illegal.
      * He colluded with Russia to rig a national election and is doing the bidding of a dangerous despot who wants to re-invade Eastern Europe.
      * He has promised to pollute your rivers and drinking water.
      * Action against climate change is now pretty much dead, as will be the rest of the planet as a result.
      * It is now A-OK for companies to accept bribes from foreign nations.
      * He wants to increase the US’ nuclear stockpiles and wonders why the US has nuclear weapons if you don’t use them.
      * He allowed un-vetted guests of his private resort to see confidential documents and take selfies with the guy who carries the nuclear “football”.
      * He cannot be trusted by your own intelligence agencies not to reveal information that will put your country in danger.
      * He aims to curb freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
      * The security for his and his family’s lifestyle is estimated to cost $800 million over the course of his first term (if he lasts that long).
      * He is supported by neo-Nazi groups and the KKK.
      * His presidency has emboldened bigots and led to an unprecedented rise in hate crimes.
      * He is a pathological liar and conspiracy theorist who seems to be mentally unstable and unable to differentiate between fact and fantasy.
      * He is a sexual predator and assaulter.

      Oh yeah, and he has been in power for less than one month.

      If you don’t understand the basics of what a danger Trump represents to your country and the world, you don’t get to whine about people who do “bitching about nonsensical stuff”. And you certainly don’t get to arrogantly proclaim “enough” to those of us who actually understand the implications of his presidency.

      And while you say you didn’t vote for Trump, on behalf of the planet, I say how DARE you minimise the threat this psychopath poses to us all!?

      • Beth says:

        +200 Kath! It’s a scary pity when people like @ff_oo78 refuse to see Trump as the danger he is

      • Janet R says:

        Good list Kath! I’m sure there could be more added as of this morning, but I come here first because I can’t face the news head on anymore – it’s so demoralizing and horrible.

      • Lady D says:

        It’s the mobilizing of his enemies that scares me, even more than nuclear threats.

    • Beth says:

      ff_oo78 it’s looking like Trump might not make it 1 year. Forget about 8 years! No chance. In case you live under a rock,I’ll let you know he’s the one acting like an adult toddler. He actually lost the election by a large margin. Nobody’s forcing you to be here. We have no reason to accept a childish monster who is scaring us all.
      I didn’t elect him either and disagree with his opinions 100%. I am embarrassed he is president and the world is laughing at us. We’ll bitch all we want.

  7. Nancy says:

    I agree with her on the best and worst lists. Joan Rivers basically started the “who are you wearing” mantra at award shows decades ago. Funny thing to me when I used to watched these fashion shows, the people dissecting other people’s choices were hot messes themselves. What’s good to one is bad to another. Wear what you like, not what you feel they will like.

  8. Kat says:

    I think she’s in a bit of a bind regarding questions about supporting Trump. She is, after all, Australian and regardless of whether she supports Trump or not (guessing no), she could hardly say that she thought the American people had done a devastatingly ridiculous thing and get away with it.

    Americans are understood to not like it when people who aren’t even American have the temerity to criticise their choice of president.

    • Cadia says:

      She is actually American by birth, born in Hawaii, and holds dual citizenship.

    • wheneight says:

      Yeah, regarding her somewhat tone-deaf Trump comments, my feeling is it has something to do with her being married to country star Keith Urban. I mean, what could she really say without pissing off a huge part of his fans.

      • Jayna says:

        Right. She’s married to a country star, and they live in Tennessee. Plus, I don’t remember her ever being vocal about elections. She’s vocal about issues she believes in.

    • Goldie says:

      She was born in the US. And although she was raised in Australia, she’s lived in the US for more than half of her life now.

  9. Darkladi says:

    More weapons of mass distraction. 😒
    Thanks. I’ll keep focusing on things that really matter

  10. Lucy2 says:

    Worst dressed lists are kind of mean spirited, now that I think about it. Her style has really changed, it’s kind of funny that her kids don’t get it either. But if she’s happy with what she chooses, who cares?

    Also:
    “All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent”

  11. boredblond says:

    Funny..I don’t recall her objecting to ‘lists’ when she was a mainstay on those titled ‘best dressed’..

  12. Greenieweenie says:

    She was never considered the best dressed woman for her conservative classic taste. That isn’t what fashion is about. She was always expressive and a risk taker–even that chartreuse fur-trimmed gown was a risk. I don’t like her fashion right now because it seems like one whimsical spaghetti strap dress after another. I LOVED the parrots. That’s fashion…not some tasteful dress you might wear to church.

  13. Lalu says:

    I know she’s not a fave here, but I like Nicole. And I like that she isn’t talking more about politics. I don’t think it’s because she is scared… I just think she probably doesn’t think her opinion is more important than everyone else’s.
    I think she’s right about the stupid lists too. Good for her for wearing what she wants.

  14. ell says:

    ‘You don’t want to have a thick skin; that’s not a compliment’

    this is interesting. i’ve developed thick skin, but sometimes i do wonder whatever that makes me a little bit more jaded. but the feeling of not truly giving a shit about what others say or think feels so liberating.

    i’m conflicted about nicole since that trump interview. i’m usually a big fan of hers both as an actor and as a person, and that comment threw me off. i’ve not cancelled her yet though, is that bad?

    lol at the engagement with kravitz. this just proves that once you split from crazy tom and his lunatics you have to hide. it’s probably why katie holmes and jamie fox are that secretive.

    • RuddyZooKeeper says:

      Having self-esteem and confidence is not the same as having thick skin. The former means you don’t care what others think, say, etc about you. The latter means you don’t allow yourself to show you care. The former, liberating. The latter, sometimes deadening.

  15. Slowsnow says:

    She’s kind of right. Those lists are always written by someone and it’s someone’s opinion. That’s why I stopped reading the website Go Fug Yourself. Their obsession with the Royals made me rethink the whole aesthetic assessment of clothing: you always have an agenda, and aesthetic preferences are not free from politics, trends and general meanness. And yes, men usually don’t make the list so they are gender biased. You only have to see the s**t Sparkles got in a previous post (was he dressed by his girlfriend?) to see that these kinds of lists and articles bring out the worst in us and yes, inherent sexism.

  16. serena says:

    She looks kind of good in these photos, which says a lot since her face changed so much. Anyway, I forgot she used to date Lenny Kravitz! Holy shit!

  17. Cherry says:

    On a different note: what’s going on with that last picture, where she’s dressed in black? Did they cut off parts of the side of her upper body or is she really that tiny? It looks strange somehow, especially with the direction her sideboobs are pointing.

  18. KL says:

    Whoa whoa whoa… She was engaged to Lenny Kravitz?

  19. lizzie says:

    imagine the sex haze going from tom cruise to lenny kravitz…WHEW…

    • Fiorella says:

      LOL! It’s also nice that she still loves him despite his cheating. Maybe his contrast to Tom is what puts him in a good light despite the alleged infidelity

  20. QQ says:

    did they Photoshoot her Old Lips in this pics?? this looks like 10 faces ago at least.. But the Styling here is DIVINE (no IDC about the contents of her Interview, I no longer listen to anything “Lets give Trump a Chane” People have to say… In any capacity)

  21. adastraperaspera says:

    She’s right about the best dressed lists. She can’t speak out politically as a feminist or progressive because she lives in Nashville and her husband’s country music contract & biz ties effectively muzzle them. Like all the stars here, he’s decided to keep his image intact for country music fans, so he doesn’t lose bucks.

  22. kimbers says:

    We have low expectations for men and that’s why no one blinks an eye at them looking like crap, or even bother adding them to “the list”. We have high expectations for women and we buy into trends more than men so we judge harsher. It’s women’s fault and we cannot blame men for our ridiculous behavior. It’s totally our choice to read and judge the lists, we’re not water boarded into participating.

  23. Bridget says:

    I highly disagree with someone’s opinion being dismissed by saying that you think she’s just mad because she’s not “best dressed” anymore. Calling women jealous, or saying that it’s just sour grapes, is a way of shutting us up. I don’t like it.

    • Fiorella says:

      fair enough. And it does not seem like Nicole is concerned with fashion. It seems she’s often and get ups like on that magazine cover. Very casual bright whites, which she kind of pulled off but definitely not the most flattering for her skin tone

      • Bridget says:

        I’m not a fan of the “best dressed” and “worst dressed” in the way that they’re done, because fashion is about so much more than ‘pretty’ and ‘pretty’ is usually what we see picked out on those lists. Non-conformity and originality are actively discouraged. If you look at Nicole’s long red carpet history, it’s clear that she likes interesting fashion. She’s willing to be experimental, to have fun with it, and isn’t afraid to stand out. To reduce her voice to “she’s just mad” misses the whole point.

  24. Fanny says:

    “I wish she would have used this interview to discuss her personal politics in greater detail. …. But there’s still a weird taint on her since she said that we need to “support” Donald Trump because he’s president. She shouldn’t be afraid to speak about how she really feels.”

    She should be afraid. She said one thing about how she felt about the election and was eviscerated before it (and is now “tainted”). You mean you want her to speak about how she feels if it’s exactly what you want her to say and nothing else.

  25. Neverwintersand says:

    Well, i personally think you’ve got great fashion in Hollywood. Just look at what we have back in my home country. These are some memorable looks from Ukrainian “fashion” week: http://ragu.li/?p=25632
    If we here started to compose worst-dressed list, there would be no end to it 🙂
    And here men and women are equally bashed for appaling fashion choises, though there is some form of sexism there, as we see women turning it up to 11 in terms of look, and men wearing some old jeans,outdated shoes, rumpled jacket and a Tshirt.

  26. Kath says:

    Nicole’s whole family is very much left-wing, and she joked many years ago in an Australian TV interview that her parents were very supportive of her career etc. but that they would disown her if she ever voted for the Liberal party (that’s the Australian conservative party). Both her parents were left-wing academics.

    When asked about Trump, I think she found herself in a very difficult position as an Australian (i.e. a foreigner, even though she was born in Hawaii). If she said ONE WORD that was remotely negative about Trump, the fans of her country-music-star hubby would have pitched an absolute fit. She lives in Tennessee and has probably had to get used to doing the evasion dance that many blue-people in red states have to do to get by.

    So, I’m willing to cut her some slack. I guarantee that she is as horrified by Trump as the rest of us.

  27. Deeanna says:

    I have often wondered about the frequency that she and her husband attend these “award events”. It seems they give new meaning to the phrase “they’d attend the opening of an envelope”. I suppose it is to keep “their brand” in the public eye. Lately I’ve noticed that Keith appears to be visiting her plastic surgeon.

  28. Loralei says:

    She said that we need to support Donald Trump. Now everyone is saying she didn’t really mean it? Seriously? Words matter. She said it. Now, she points out misogynistic behavior, but Trump needs to be supported? Give me a break.