Nicole Kidman Plays Tough Matriarch in Murder Mystery 'The Perfect Couple'

Actor Nicole Kidman attends the UK premiere of the TV series "The Perfect Couple" at the BFI IMAX in London, Britain, September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Mina Kim
Actor Nicole Kidman attends the UK premiere of the TV series "The Perfect Couple" at the BFI IMAX in London, Britain, September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Mina Kim
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Nicole Kidman Plays Tough Matriarch in Murder Mystery 'The Perfect Couple'

Actor Nicole Kidman attends the UK premiere of the TV series "The Perfect Couple" at the BFI IMAX in London, Britain, September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Mina Kim
Actor Nicole Kidman attends the UK premiere of the TV series "The Perfect Couple" at the BFI IMAX in London, Britain, September 2, 2024. REUTERS/Mina Kim

Nicole Kidman brings murder mystery "The Perfect Couple" to the small screen in a new Netflix mini-series in which she plays a matriarch of a wealthy American family with plenty of secrets.
The six-part show, adapted from the 2018 novel by Elin Hilderbrand, stars Eve Hewson as zookeeper Amelia Sacks who is marrying into one of the richest families on Nantucket.
Kidman plays her disapproving future mother-in-law, murder mystery novelist Greer Garrison Winbury, who has organized a lavish wedding at the family home over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
When a body washes up ashore on the day of the nuptials, however, secrets unravel and an investigation begins.
"I grew up on (murder mysteries) and... I haven't seen one like this for a while, so it was really exciting to be a part of it and to be able to produce it as well," Kidman told Reuters at the series' UK premiere in London on Monday.
The Oscar winner said the role was "so different" to the one she plays in "Babygirl", an erotic drama she premiered at the Venice Film Festival last week.
"(Greer is) strong and, and powerful and that was exciting to play... I'm always on this quest to find things that I haven't done or have different experiences," she said.
Liev Schreiber plays family patriarch Tag, a role the actor said he needed "some convincing" taking on.
"But once I talked to (director) Susanne Bier for about two weeks and Nicole (Kidman), I just realized how deliciously dark and wonderful this was going to be so it worked out,” he said.
Meanwhile Hewson's character is the outsider.
“I was a little bit jealous of the Winburys (family characters) just because they have amazing one liners," she said. "I was the grounded one... the serious one."
The series cast also includes Dakota Fanning, Meghann Fahy, Jack Reynor, Billy Howle, Sam Nivola and Ishaan Khatter.
"The Perfect Couple" premieres on Netflix on Thursday.



‘The Brutalist’ Cast Beams over Breadth of Film’s Story

 This image released by A24 shows Adrien Brody in a scene from "The Brutalist." (Lol Crawley/A24 via AP)
This image released by A24 shows Adrien Brody in a scene from "The Brutalist." (Lol Crawley/A24 via AP)
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‘The Brutalist’ Cast Beams over Breadth of Film’s Story

 This image released by A24 shows Adrien Brody in a scene from "The Brutalist." (Lol Crawley/A24 via AP)
This image released by A24 shows Adrien Brody in a scene from "The Brutalist." (Lol Crawley/A24 via AP)

The cast of the film “The Brutalist” is giving their director Brady Corbet all the credit when it comes to the strong acclaim for the movie.

“He's a special filmmaker because he focuses on psychology and behavior and those things that we as actors are genuinely interested in,” said Guy Pearce, who plays wealthy industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren.

“So, it was a real treat from start to finish,” he added.

The movie is an epic tale of a Hungarian immigrant who flees the horrors of World War Two to rebuild his life in the United States, and stars Oscar-winner Adrien Brody in the leading role of the architect Laszlo Toth.

"The Brutalist", which has a three-hour and 35-minute runtime and comes with a 15-minute intermission, was co-written by Corbet's wife, Mona Fastvold.

It was successful at the Venice International Film Festival earlier this year, with Corbet winning the best director prize.

The film, distributed by A24, arrives in movie theaters on Dec. 20 in the United States.

Brody, who had read the script nearly six years ago, expressed his deep connection to the story and his character through both his Hungarian-born mother and grandfather.

“Her [his mother’s] journey as an artist, her pursuits as an artist are deeply profound and linked to this,” he said.

For Brody, the role connected him with his mother’s yearning to leave something of great meaning behind, which was enhanced when contrasted with an understanding of hardship.

He also thought of his own grandfather's struggles with language and assimilation as a foreigner without work opportunities or respect.

“That (respect) was lost and taken from him,” Brody added.

His grandfather, fleeing from home due to the war, largely shaped the actor’s perspective of his role.

For “The Theory of Everything” actress Felicity Jones, who portrays Toth’s wife in the film, Erzsebet Toth, some of the most compelling aspects of the film are its characters and unique storytelling style.

“These characters, particularly Laszlo and Erzsebet, you know, they're doing everything they can to preserve their integrity and their self-worth,” she said.

Brody was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for best performance for a male actor in a motion picture drama and is receiving Oscar buzz for his role.

For “The Pianist” actor, having a strong team was key to the power of the film.

“In order to do work on this level, you need all of those to conspire with you and not against you,” Brody said.