Despite acting in countless romantic scenes throughout her decades-long career, Nicole Kidman has one very firm boundary when it comes to on-screen intimacy.
During a candid conversation on the Las Culturistas podcast on March 11, Kidman opened up about a moment while filming the HBO drama Big Little Lies that left her calling out her co-star Alexander Skarsgård before they even started shooting a scene.
The actress recalled that a small detail made it impossible for her to get into character, and it led to a rule she insisted on before the cameras rolled.
Nicole Kidman recalled one strict demand she had before kissing Alexander Skarsgård on Big Little Lies
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The 58-year-old explained that she has a strong sense of smell and that it can significantly affect how she reacts to someone during close scenes.
“I’m very, very smell sensitive,” Kidman said in the episode. “I’m either drawn to or drawn away based on a smell.”
Her sensitivity ultimately led to an awkward but memorable moment while filming Big Little Lies, where Skarsgård played her abusive husband Perry Wright, and the two filmed several intense, intimate scenes.
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Kidman recalled noticing something immediately before they filmed one of their kissing moments.
“When Alexander Skarsgård ate a falafel sandwich before we did the scenes,” she said, laughing.
The actress quickly intervened before filming continued. “I’m meant to be into you and kissing you — put away the falafel now,” she told him. “Because the bad breath does not turn me on.”
Nicole Kidman also admitted that bad breath is a complete dealbreaker on set for her
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Babygirl star went on to explain that oral hygiene is something she takes seriously when filming close scenes with co-stars.
According to her, bad breath is an immediate dealbreaker, no matter how attractive the actor might be.
“You could be the most gorgeous, gorgeous guy, and you come at me with bad breath, and I’m like no, no, no,” she said.
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She joked that if she ever had to recoil after asking someone to breathe toward her, the scene would immediately fall apart.
“I’m out. You could not offer me enough money.”
After the falafel incident, Kidman quipped that Skarsgård probably learned his lesson quickly. “I’m sure he did not eat a falafel ever again. I said, ‘No more falafel. Not before you kiss, not before you make love.’”
Elsewhere in the podcast, Kidman revealed the best-smelling celebrity she has ever met
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While discussing scent, Kidman was also questioned which celebrity left the most memorable impression on her. And without hesitation, she said Rihanna.
“It’s intoxicating. Like I will follow you around,” she said of the rapper.
She further noted that the rumors about Rihanna smelling incredible are completely true. “We don’t need to unwind it or decipher it, just know it’s all true.”
Kidman is not the first celebrity to praise Rihanna’s smell.
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Lil Nas X was once asked about his favorite smell in an interview for Q4 Music, and he responded, “Rihanna”. He described that she smelled like “heaven.”
Back in 2016, Nick Jonas told The Sun that he flirted with the singer once. “She smells amazing, that is one thing I can tell you.”
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Other celebs, including Jim Parsons, Olly Alexander, Ryan Seacrest, and Jennifer Lawrence, have openly lauded Rihanna’s scent.
“She was so, so beautiful, and she had like really, really soft skin and smelled really good,” Lawrence said in a 2013 BBC interview.
Kidman’s admission came shortly after she recently opened up about her personal life following her divorce from Keith Urban
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In an interview with Variety, Kidman confirmed that she and country singer Keith Urban finalized their divorce earlier this year after nearly two decades of marriage.
Despite the separation, Kidman shared that her priority remains her family and their daughters, Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret.
“What I’m grateful for is my family and keeping them as is and moving forward,” she said. “We are a family, and that’s what we’ll continue to be.”
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Professionally, Kidman is preparing for one of her busiest years yet.
Her upcoming projects include the long-awaited television adaptation of Patricia Cornwell’s Scarpetta, the sequel Practical Magic 2 alongside Sandra Bullock, a new season of Lioness, and a horror film directed by Osgood Perkins.
As she put it in her Variety interview, “2026. Here we go.”
“Maybe he was grossed out,” wrote one user
