In 2017, Sofia Coppola made history after becoming the second female filmmaker to win Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival for The Beguiled, starring, the Queen of Cannes, Nicole Kidman. On this historic occasion, the actress vowed to continue supporting women in the industry, which has been largely dominated by men since its very inception.
While other major A-listers have also spoken in support of female filmmakers, including Natalie Portman, it has been the Eyes Wide Shut Star, who has held her promise.
Nicole Kidman Continues to Deliver on Her Promise
Having been surrounded by strong women throughout her life, Kidman has been pretty vocal about her fondness for working with women, stressing she feels safe and comfortable around them. And considering the stats for 2016 showed that only a minuscule percentage of the top films were directed by women, Kidman decided to ameliorate things herself. Staying true to her words at Cannes, where she expressed she would love to collaborate with a female filmmaker every 18 months, the Oscar-winner has continued to star in projects led by women. She said (via Elle):
“There’s a lot of talk, but I need to do; I’m a doer. I also just love women. I’m surrounded by great women and I understand all the aspects of different women, because we have so many women in our family. I feel very, very safe and very at home.”
With her new show Expats, written by acclaimed writer Lulu Wang, Nicole Kidman continues to work for more recognition for female filmmakers in showbiz. But opposite to the Oscar-winner, who has been commended for her stance, Portman, who too previously stood in support of female filmmakers in Hollywood, landed in hot water in 2020.
Natalie Portman Was Deemed Hypocritical After She Stood in Support of Female Filmmakers
Heading into the 92nd Academy Awards, Natalie Portman wore a gown featuring the names of eight female filmmakers, including Greta Gerwig and Lulu Wang, who were snubbed at the Oscars. However, many deemed this act disingenuous, as throughout her illustrious run in the realm of movies, she has only collaborated with three female directors.
The Black Swan Star did come forward to address the criticisms and cited her works in various short films and music videos, which saw her collaborating with many female filmmakers. The actress further expressed that she had and will continue to try to help her peers in showbiz, stating,
“It is true I’ve only made a few films with women. In my long career, I’ve only gotten the chance to work with female directors a few times — I’ve made shorts, commercials, music videos and features with Marya Cohen, Mira Nair, Rebecca Zlotowski, Anna Rose Holmer, Sofia Coppola, Shirin Neshat, and myself. Unfortunately, the unmade films I have tried to make are a ghost history. I have had the experience a few times of helping get female directors hired on projects which they were then forced out of because of the conditions they faced at work. So I want to say, I have tried, and I will keep trying. While I have not yet been successful, I am hopeful that we are stepping into a new day.”
While the road ahead is long, as Gerwig was once again snubbed from her Oscar glory, things have meliorated a lot, with Justine Triet and Celine Song’s work earning deserved recognition this Awards season.
Expats is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
