Craziest Antonio Banderas Twist in Nicole Kidman’s ‘Babygirl’ Could Help It Easily Surpass Tom Cruise’s ‘Eyes Wide Shut’
- Babygirl is Nicole Kidman's second erotic thriller drama after Eyes Wide Shut.
- Fans pointed out the insane chemistry between Antonio Banderas-Harris Dickinson.
- Filmmaker Halina Reijn defends the age gap in the recent movies.
Nicole Kidman stars alongside Harris Dickinson, Antonio Banderas, and Sophie Wilde in Halina Reijn’s erotic thriller movie Babygirl. The movie follows a high-powered CEO’s torrid affair with an intern, keeping her career and family on the line. The movie debuted at the 81st Venice International Film Festival and received a positive response from the critics.
Kidman’s performance in Babygirl earned her the Volpi Cup for Best Actress, and she, along with Dickinson, was highly appreciated for their performances in the movie. Babygirl was released on December 25th, 2024 and while it may take a weekend to know the response of the movie, one suggestion from a fan suggests that it could have helped the movie to reach heights.
Fans pointed out Harrison Dickinson and Antonio Banderas’ chemistry in Babygirl
Halina Reijn’s Babygirl follows Nicole Kidman’s character being entangled with a young intern played by Harris Dickinson while being married to Antonio Banderas’ character. Kidman, in her cover story for THR, calls playing the role of Romy on-screen her ‘calling’ and explains that from the minute she read the part, she heard a voice in her head telling her that neither she had been in a place like this nor the audience, so she took a chance.
Kidman added that, according to her, the movie is very releasing, and she is hoping that it is the same for the audience. She also shared that she found the story of the movie incredibly sexy, raw, and dangerous. The actress noted that she couldn’t believe they were given the money to make it.
Babygirl is Kidman’s second erotic drama movie, as she appeared in 1999’s Eyes Wide Shut alongside Tom Cruise. The movie, upon release, received a positive response from the audience and critics, making it late Stanley Kubrick’s highest-grossing movie. The film holds about 76% score on Rotten Tomatoes whereas Babygirl holds a 77% critic score but 54% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
To surpass the success of Eyes Wide Shut, Babygirl could have taken up or thought of an angle, which was pointed out by a Reddit user. They wrote in a Reddit thread,
I honestly thought it was going to be a threesome/‘yes, we can both play with him’ situation because the chemistry between Harris Dickinson and Antonio Banderas was undeniable in the short scene they were both in.
The user pointed out that in a scene where Samuel is whispering to Jacob, gently asking him to take deep breaths after Jacob suffered a panic attack, it clearly showcases their strong chemistry.
The user also went on to praise the maker for not making Samuel look disheveled and slightly greasy at times. Another user agreed and stated ‘Glad, I’m not the only one who read that panic attack as a potential seduction.’
However, Babygirl does not take the panic attack moment any further than fans expected especially because the movie is about a woman delving into her desires. But a three-way scene could have done wonders for the rating of the movie. The movie has received mixed reviews on Reddit, but the following weekend determines the fate of it.
Babygirl director Halina Reijn defends the age gap
In a recent interview with W Magazine, Babygirl filmmaker Halina Reijn addressed the recent trend in movies of the age gap between the lead pair. She said,
If we see a movie where the male actor is the same age as the female actor, we find that odd, which is insane. It should completely be normalized that the age gaps switch and that women have different relationships.
Reijn added that women are no longer trapped in a box as they internalize the male gaze and the patriarchy, and they need to free themselves from it. She further noted that she wanted the s*x scenes in the movie to not only feel incredibly hot, steamy, and fun but also very real.
She mentioned that s**uality is stop-and-go, adding that it’s never like a glamour scene from a Hollywood movie in the ‘90s. For the filmmaker, the movie is about a woman trying to liberate herself, which is a concept she explored when she realized that most of the iconic female characters she had played ended up dying.
Heijn started writing Babygirl with the idea of mastering the theme of power, sexuality, and surrender but with a different outcome, and it seems like her hard work paid off.
Babygirl is playing in cinemas.
