Just In: Fans Think Nicole Kidman Is Lying About The Divorce Meme Origins — But I Have 4 Possible Theories…. Read More

For more than a decade, internet users have shared the beloved meme of Nicole Kidman celebrating after supposedly signing divorce papers to end her marriage with Tom Cruise. However, earlier this week, the 57-year-old claimed that the lore we’d been citing for all these years wasn’t the truth at all and that the pics were simply snapped on the set of a film, rather than a moment of IRL bliss. Now, internet sleuths are calling bullshit on the Aussie darling’s recent admission.

You see, The Perfect Stranger star said the memorable pics were taken on a film set — but she didn’t specify which film.

“That’s not true,” she told British GQ, in reference to the pics being in reference to her divorce.

“That was not me. That was from a film. That wasn’t real life. I know that image!”

When I reported on this story on November 19, my first point of call was trailing through her IMDb page to see if I could match anything — from the clothes to the character or even the general aesthetic of the image — with any project from 2001-2004. Nothing seemed to match up. The closest fit I could find was 1999’s Eyes Wide Shut which she starred in with Tom Cruise.

It turns out I’m not the only one who gave her film history a deep dive to trace the image’s origins and couldn’t find anything.

“You’d think someone would name the movie but it’s a mystery to this day wow… incredible!” wrote a Reddit user.

“I just did a deep dive on this and not only does she not specify which movie it was, none of her legions of fans even have a hypothesis as to which movie it could have been. So I feel comfortable concluding that she’s lying and it really is a post-divorce paparazzi shot,” tweeted a sleuth

1. It wasn’t a movie but it WAS a performance
Okay, okay, hear me out. According to an article in the Irish Independent via Polygon, Cruise and Kidman finalised their divorce on August 10, 2001. In writing about the iconic pictures, The I

“The astonishing emotional performance happened in the middle of a Los Angeles street. Yet it was not a scene from one of the Hollywood star’s movies. Instead, it was the 34-year-old actress’s way of celebrating signing the papers that end her marriage to Tom Cruise,” the article read.

“It came as she left the Los Angeles offices of her lawyers, having put her name to the quickie divorce which was granted last week by the US Superior Court. Six months after 39-year-old Cruise dropped the bombshell news that he wanted a divorce, Miss Kidman celebrated her freedom with a cry which also served to vent her pent-up rage and frustration.”

The article also included an account of someone who claimed to have witnessed the iconic moment.

She walked out of the offices, threw back her head and arms and let out this amazing cry. She was crying out halfway down the street as she walked along. It was obviously a very emotional moment,” they said.

At the time, Kidman and Cruise’s divorce was headline fodder for the tabloids. In a world without social media, celebrity breakups weren’t about notes app statements on Instagram Stories. It was done in the headlines. What if this moment was a performance orchestrated by Kidman and her team to reclaim the narrative? What if Nicole doesn’t look back too fondly at this decision to manipulate the public via the press?

Am I going too far into this? Should I go get a tin-foil hat?

2. She was sneezing
According to some old comments on Reddit and other forums, Kidman has previously told reporters that paparazzi caught her seconds before she was about to sneeze.

I don’t know if I believe this one, because she was snapped from multiple angles as she walked down what looks like a driveway, but it’s fun nonetheless.

Although we can’t find a film that matches the vibe on IMDb, there is a possibility that this was for a film that started filming but never made it to the final cut. Whether it be from budget overruns, illnesses, scheduling conflicts, weather, technical issues or lawsuits, there are a whole heap of reasons why movies cease production halfway through.

However, it’s pretty unlikely that no one would be able to track down which project this was. Especially with such an iconic outfit — and such a big star!
4. Miss Girl just doesn’t vibe with the discourse surrounding a painful divorce
Kidman married Cruise in 1990. They adopted two children Isabella, 31, and Connor, 29, before divorcing in 2001.

Since then, the Big Little Lies star has rarely spoken publicly about her divorce with Cruise. In 2012, Kidman told Dujour Magazine that she’d been “blindsided” by Cruise’s decision to leave the relationship.

“I thought our life together was perfect. It took me a very long time to heal. It was a shock to my system.

“We were in a bubble, just the two of us. We became very dependent on one another. I was reeling with Tom. I would have gone to the ends of the earth for him.”

After going through something like that, I can understand why she might not enjoy the rhetoric surrounding the viral image — especially when it seems to do the rounds every few years on social media.

Thankfully, Kidman moved on with country singer Keith Urban and they’ve been married since 2006. They have two daughters together, Sunday, 16, and Faith, 13.

In 2022, she told Gayle King that meeting Urban changed her life for the better.

“I met him later in life and it’s been the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” said.

I think it’s fair to say their love is an absolute vibe.

That’s my kinda love, right there.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. The meme itself has gained a life of its own. Regardless of Kidman’s interpretation, I have a feeling that it will continue to be shared by people stoked to be divorcing their partners for many, many years to come.