HOLLY: 'The most daring thing about Babygirl isn't the sex.'
Holly unpacks how Nicole Kidman's new film goes deeper than just 'shock value', Deborra-Lee Furness is thriving in her "chapter three", and the new podcast host stepping into Mia Freedman's chair.
There's a moment in Babygirl when we follow a close-up of a Botox needle sliding into Nicole Kidman's lineless forehead.
In the film, her character, Romy, is a tech company CEO and mother of two whose self-care, self-optimisation routine is appropriately rigorous. She's frequently in a cryogenic tank or pounding her body in diligent workouts or stretching out on the Pilates reformer. Every inch disciplined, controlled, Romy is wrapped and draped in cashmere coats and sleeveless metallic gowns and always, always wearing the spiked-high heels of the stereotyped alpha woman.
Romy's daughter teases her about her filled lips and what she calls her 'dead fish' face, taunting her mother with no understanding of the pressure and expectation a woman, not a girl, feels when performing in a male-dominated world. One where appearing to be flawless, youthful, endlessly, effortlessly energetic feels like the bare minimum requirement for continuing to play in the big leagues without reminding any of the Big Men Bosses of their mothers. No wrinkles, no dimples, no hormonal slumps allowed.
A world, it seems, a lot like Hollywood.
Or, at least, how Hollywood has always been.
Performing a Botox injection onscreen might be as daring for Kidman - whose face comes under endless, tedious scrutiny - as the much-more discussed scenes in Babygirl. The ones where she's on her hands and knees drinking milk from a saucer. The ones where she's standing facing the corner of a grim hotel room like a chastened schoolgirl on the order of her younger, dominating lover. The ones where she performs orgasms in the tightest of frames. The ones where she is naked.
All of those, Kidman has said, were safe, comfortable, necessary, in the hands of her maestro, the 49-year-old Dutch director Halina Riejn, who wanted to make a movie about power and sex through a very female lens. She's done that. Babygirl is not really like much you see on the mainstream screen. At least, not until recently. That is risky.
But revealing the eternal, external pressure to stay something like young, taut, put-together? Taboo. Almost as big a taboo as your work intern pushing his fingers into your mouth in your mentoring session, or telling your husband he's never given you an orgasm. Or finding a young man dancing with a glass of whisky to George Michael's Father Figure pant-droppingly hot…
🎧 Follow below to listen to Holly’s thoughts on Nicole Kidman's "controversial" new film, Babygirl, and the fact that Gen X's most iconic actresses are dominating Hollywood ATM.
Read and listen to more
READ: Laura Brodenik’s brutally honest review of Babygirl
LISTEN: Holly, Mia and Jessie talking about the LET THEM theory on Out Loud
How the 'let them' theory has changed more than 2 million people's lives
Have you seen Babygirl? What do you think about Gen X icons having their moment in Hollywood right now?
👀 Share your tea by leaving a comment.
Deborra-Lee Furness is just fine, thank you.
Hugh who? Deborra-Lee Furness is thriving in her "chapter three", after her 27-year marriage with Hugh Jackman came to an end.
Two weeks after those very public kissing photos of Jackman and Sutton Foster emerged, Deb has made it crystal clear she's doing just fine, thank you very much!
The actress was spotted living her best life at the Australian Open with daughter Ava, and in true Deb fashion, she's redirected the conversation to what matters most: her exciting next chapter.
"I've got some projects in New York. I'm in my chapter three," she told the Herald Sun at the event, casually dropping that she's reviewing film offers. (And yes, that's after mostly stepping back from the screen during her marriage to Hugh.)
It's a masterclass in rebounding from a breakup, really.
"I've had a few offers for films back here so I'm still reading some scripts so if there's something that's great,'' she said. "I'm a creative, I love being creative in a variety of areas and I think I'll be doing more travelling."
I reckon a cheeky mother-daughter trip to Mykonos is in order…
🎧 Follow below to listen to The Quicky. Find out just how the powerhouse women in their 50s and 60s are breaking Hollywood's age barrier, taking on complex leading roles that go far beyond the typical 'aging matriarch' stereotype.
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LISTEN: What Hugh Jackman Got Right About Dating After Divorce
Bill Gates’ condition when he got remarried: He could go on a yearly holiday with his ex.
Mia Freedman steps down from No Filter after 10 years. Kate Langbroek announced as new host.
Some news.
After 10 years, 655 episodes, and 69 million downloads of No Filter, I'm stepping away from the microphone. The Naomi Watts interview we dropped last week was my last as host.
And I wanted to tell you a bit about how I came to this pretty major decision.
If you've been listening to the show for a while, you might have noticed that I've tried to step away a couple of times before, when I've persuaded some very capable women to fill in for me while I took a breath.
No Filter is just one of the things I do here at Mamamia — I wear a few different hats. I'm a co-founder of the company, which started as just me and is now a team of more than 150 people, and I'm also a co-host on Mamamia Outloud which is a daily show and the 3rd biggest podcast in the country.
I also write a newsletter called Babble, I have three kids, two dogs and a fairly new granddaughter and for the last 17 years, since Mamamia began, I've just kept adding new things to my plate. Because I love what I do.
I love our core purpose — which is to make the world a better place for women and girls — and I love to think about new ways to do that with all kinds of content.
No Filter has been — and will continue to be — a big part of that core purpose… because by inviting people to tell their stories in a candid, intimate, vulnerable way that is sometimes heartbreaking, often funny and always interesting… it helps people.
I know this because you tell me — it helps you to understand other people's experiences and perspectives, and it helps you to feel seen if perhaps you've experienced something similar…
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LISTEN: Mia’s farewell announcement on No Filter
LISTEN: Kate Langbroek’s brilliant interview with Andy Lee on No Filter
Before we get on with the MID-good-ness, we need your help. We’d love your thoughts for a quick study, so we can get to know you better.
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And don’t forget to come back, there’s plenty more mid-spo below…
Click the link HERE and follow the prompts – it'll take 10 minutes max, we value your opinions :)
THE SCROLL 📱
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1. 'I'm an over 40s makeup expert. These are the 6 best foundations for mature skin.'
2. 'When I got sober at 53, I didn't expect it to give my sex life a serious upgrade.'
3. In 2009, Octomum was the world's most famous mother. 16 years later, her kids are speaking out.
4. LAURA HENSHAW: '3 easy meal prep lunches I make on repeat.'
5. Gwyneth Paltrow's homes are worth more than $81 million. Step inside 3 of them.
ICYMI 👀
The best new TV shows and movies of 2025, so far. Princess Beatrice welcomed her second child, with a name steeped in royal history. 'Stepford Skin' is why all your fave celebs look the same as they did 20 years ago. The 5 biggest bombshells from the Prince Harry and Meghan Markle report. There’s a new fashion clash between Millenial and Gen Z’s over a beloved staple.
MID-SPO STYLE 👗💄
Trinny Woodall is a firm believer that ages does not need to define your style. She decided to make over three women in their 60s to show just how ageless fashion can really be. Her hot tip: the key to looking and feeling your best is knowing exactly what suits you. And wow, we j’adore these outfits. And we j’adore Trinny.
Watch below ⬇️
Our pick of what’s new in beauty, home and style on Mamamia this week.
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All the beauty products we're loving this month.
Bet you know someone who’d get a kick out of MID. Time to share the love, don’t you think?
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