Nicole Kidman Gives Tom Cruise Rare Shoutout (But Keeps It Subtle)

Before Nicole Kidman was married to Keith Urban, she was married to Tom Cruise. While Kidman generally doesn't publicly talk about her marriage to Cruise in a show of respect to Urban, she subtly acknowledged Cruise as she accepted her American Film Institute's (AFI) Life Achievement Award. In her speech, she talked about other actors in the industry and what she got from them over the years. "Some of them, you have incredible laughter and jokes with and you cry with, some of them you fall in love with, some of them you marry," she shared, per The Hollywood Reporter. Since her current husband is notably a country singer, she must have been referring to Cruise.

It's been over two decades since Kidman and Cruise split up in what sounds like a pretty contentious divorce where Cruise was the one to ditch Kidman while she wanted to work on their marriage. So it was just the right level of acknowledgment to Cruise without making a big deal about the relationship that had ended such a long time ago...and while her husband was in the audience.

Even though it's been long over, Nicole Kidman's relationship with Tom Cruise was a big part of her life. They were married for 11 years and share two kids — Bella and Connor — and Kidman and Cruise starred in three movies together. It was their 1990 film "Days of Thunder" that helped catapult Kidman into Hollywood stardom. So it makes sense that Kidman would give a small nod to him. 

However, along with the subtle reference to Cruise in her speech, Kidman gave a more direct shoutout to Urban during her AFI award acceptance. "Right there," she said, as she pointed at Urban, "is the love of my life and the loves of my life," via YouTube.

She also seemed to be gesturing to her daughters and other family members sitting with Urban. Urban and Kidman have two daughters together — Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret. The AFI event was Urban and Kidman's daughters' first time on the red carpet with their famous parents. Kidman's children with Cruise didn't attend the event, nor did Cruise.