Nicole Kidman returns to Venice Film Festival with erotic drama ‘Babygirl’

VENICE, Italy (AP) — “Babygirl,” an erotic thriller about a female CEO who begins an affair with a younger, male intern, is about sex, certainly. But that’s just part of the story.

It’s also about desire, secrets, marriage, truth, power and consent, star Nicole Kidman said Friday at the Venice Film Festival. And it's bound to inspire conversations for months to come.

From filmmaker Halina Reijn, “Babygirl” is having its world premiere Friday evening on the Lido, where it’s playing in competition before A24 releases it in theaters in December.

Antonio Banderas plays the husband of Kidman’s character and Harris Dickinson is the intern. Both her personal life and career are jeopardized through the ripples of the affair.

“I hope it's a very liberating story,” Kidman said. “It was told by a woman through her gaze … that’s what to me what made it so unique.”

Arriving at the festival by water taxi, Kidman posed for photographers on the dock in the blazing sun before making her way to a news conference. She wore a black Bottega Veneta midi dress with short sleeves and a deep V-neck.

Kidman came to Venice 25 years ago with another risqué film: Stanley Kubrick's “Eyes Wide Shut.” But even with a resume full of boundary-pushing, sexy and challenging work, she still has some anxiety about this one. During a news conference, she said she was nervous.

“I hope my hands aren’t shaking,” Kidman said.

She said that as an actor she’s always interested in examining human beings — especially women — on screen and exploring questions about what it means to be human and the “labyrinth of that.”

“This definitely leaves me exposed and frightened and vulnerable when it’s given to the world,” she said.

Reijn, who previously made the youthful, anarchic slasher “ Bodies Bodies Bodies,” was excited to explore the idea of female desire, but also about a woman in an existential crisis. With that in mind, she said it was important for the husband, who does not satisfy Kidman’s character, to be both handsome and masculine. This, she said, is why she wanted Banderas.

“It’s a cautionary tale about what happens when you suppress your own desires,” Reijn said.

The director was inspired to make “Babygirl” out of a love for the erotic thrillers of the 1980s and 90s from the likes of Paul Verhoeven and Adrian Lyne, but unlike in some of those stories, she didn’t want to “punish” the woman.

“I don’t want any of my characters to be punished,” Reijn said. “I just want them to be.”

Kidman and Dickinson got to know one another prior to filming through rehearsals in New York, knowing that the shoot would be quick. They also utilized an intimacy coordinator to help guide them through the steamier scenes.

“Babygirl” also looks at generational differences when it comes to topics like sex and intimacy, juxtaposing Kidman and Banderas with Dickinson and actor Sophie Wilde.

“It was four of us together on a journey and it was really, really intimate,” Kidman said. “Enormous care taken by all of us, we were all very gentle with each other and helped each other.”

Dickinson liked the specificity in which the story and script addressed the “confusion within a young man of now.”

“A confusion about how to conduct yourself and how to conduct yourself in sex,” Dickinson said. “Halina was always ready to dissect and challenge that and challenge the nuance of the behavior. That opened up a whole new world of the film.”

On the red carpet before the premiere, Antonio Banderas signed autographs for fans, while Nicole Kidman stopped to talk to a man on a hospital bed. In the theater, the crowd gave her as standing ovation as the lights went down.

“Babygirl" is competing for the festival's top prizes alongside the likes of “Maria” and the yet-to-premiere “The Room Next Door,” “Queer” and “Joker: Folie à Deux.” Winners will be announced on Sept. 7.

For more coverage of the 2024 Venice Film Festival, visit https://apnews.com/hub/venice-film-festival.

Cristobal Tapia de Veer, from left, producer David Hinojosa, Sophie Wilde, Antonio Banderas, Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson and director Halina Reijn pose for photographers upon arrival for the premiere of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

Cristobal Tapia de Veer, from left, producer David Hinojosa, Sophie Wilde, Antonio Banderas, Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson and director Halina Reijn pose for photographers upon arrival for the premiere of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

Nicole Kidman poses for photographers upon arrival for the premiere of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

Nicole Kidman poses for photographers upon arrival for the premiere of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

This image released by A24 shows director Halina Reijn, left, and Nicole Kidman on the set of "Babygirl." (A24 via AP)

Antonio Banderas poses for photographers at the photo call for the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Antonio Banderas poses for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Sophie Wilde poses for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Harris Dickinson poses for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Antonio Banderas, left, and Nicole Kidman pose for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Nicole Kidman poses for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Director Halina Reijn, left, and Nicole Kidman pose for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Nicole Kidman poses for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Director Halina Reijn, left, and Nicole Kidman pose for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

This image released by A24 shows Nicole Kidman in a scene from "Babygirl." (Niko Tavernise/A24 via AP)

Nicole Kidman upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

Nicole Kidman poses for photographers upon arrival for the press conference of the film 'Babygirl' during the 81st edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)

BUKWO, Uganda (AP) — Thousands of mourners in Uganda paid respects to Rebecca Cheptegei, the Olympic athlete who died last week in Kenya after her partner set her on fire, at a military funeral in a remote town near the Kenyan border.

Military officers played a prominent role in the funeral because Cheptegei held the rank of sergeant in Uganda's army, said military spokesman Brig. Felix Kulayigye, adding that she deserved a “gun salute that befits her rank."

Athletes, family members and others delivered their eulogies before thousands in a sports field in the district of Bukwo.

Cheptegei, who was 33, will be buried later on Saturday.

She died after her body suffered 80% burns in the attack by Dickson Ndiema, who doused her in gasoline at her home in western Kenya’s Trans-Nzoia County on Sept. 3. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed to his injuries.

According to a report filed by the local chief, they quarreled over a piece of land the athlete bought in Kenya.

The horrific gasoline attack shocked many and strengthened calls for the protection of female runners facing exploitation and abuse in the East African country.

Cheptegei’s body was returned to Uganda Friday in a somber procession following a street march by dozens of activists in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret who demanded an end to physical violence against female athletes.

Cheptegei is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in a worrying pattern of gender-based violence in recent years. Kenya’s high rates of violence against women have prompted several marches this year.

Ugandan officials have condemned the attack, demanding justice for Cheptegei. First lady Janet Museveni, who also serves as Uganda’s education and sports minister, described the attack as “deeply disturbing.”

Don Rukare, chairman of the National Council of Sports of Uganda, said in a statement on X that the attack was “a cowardly and senseless act that has led to the loss of a great athlete.”

Four in 10 women, or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women, have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey.

Many Ugandan athletes train across the border in Kenya, an athletics powerhouse with better facilities. Some of the region’s best runners train together at a high-altitude center in Kenya’s west.

Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics, finishing in 44th place, less than a month before the attack. She had represented Uganda at other competitions.

—

Muhumuza reported from Kampala, Uganda.

Members of the public gather for a funeral service of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei ahead of her burial in Kapkoros, Bukwo District, Uganda Saturday, Sept. 14. 2024. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)

Members of Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) carry the coffin of their colleague Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Koriny Cheptegei, ahead of her burial in Kapkoros, Bukwo District, Uganda Saturday, Sept. 14. 2024. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)

Members of Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) stand at the casket of their colleague Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Koriny Cheptegei, ahead of her burial in Kapkoros, Bukwo District, Uganda Saturday, Sept. 14. 2024. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)

Members of the public gather for a funeral service of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei ahead of her burial in Kapkoros, Bukwo District, Uganda Saturday, Sept. 14. 2024. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)

Mourners pay respects to Ugandan athlete who died after her partner set her on fire

Mourners pay respects to Ugandan athlete who died after her partner set her on fire

FILE -Rebecca Cheptegei, competes at the Discovery 10km road race in Kapchorwa, Uganda, Jan. 20, 2023. (AP Photo, File)