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Discuss: Do We Buy Nicole Kidman as an Action Star?



Get ready -- in the wake of an oldie but goodie like Harrison Ford and a young but slick Matt Damon, we're now getting ... Nicole Kidman. The Hollywood Reporter posts that she's going to star in (and produce) a new action adventure called The Eighth Wonder. They're saying practically nothing about the plot, but we do know that it's a globe-spanning race centered on an archaeological discovery. "The goal is to create a movie that will be to Raiders of the Lost Ark what the Bourne movies are to James Bond movies: a character-driven, treasure-hunting thriller." Nicole Kidman. Really? To anchor a big action adventure franchise?

I mean, let's forget her notorious "iffyness" on sticking with certain projects and focus on the theme of this flick. Do any of you really think she'll pull in the audiences as the next action star, or even pull it off in a way to tantalize apprehensive audiences? I would love, love, love to see a kickass woman take the action adventure reins, but her?


Yes, she's done some flicks with action in them -- often, for some reason,-playing a doctor -- Days of Thunder, Batman Forever, The Peacemaker. But that's really not the same as becoming an action icon. Sure, she's got Australia on the way, but that's more as the romantic side to Hugh Jackman. She has lots of talent, but perhaps they're best suited to films like To Die For, Dogville, The Hours, Moulin Rouge!, and Fur.

THR
mentions that she was supposed to star in Mr. and Mrs. Smith (can you imagine Brad, a collection of babies, and Nicole?!), but she dropped out and Angelina stepped in. And then there was the chase-heavy The Invasion, which by all accounts Ms. Kidman should have bailed on. Then there was another possible thriller, but that dead-ended. Now, action specialist Simon Kinberg is writing this pic for her over the fall.

Maybe Kidman will get cold feet and back out of this project too. It could happen, opening the door for another actress. But for right now, we've got Nicole gearing up to get dusty, kick butt, and revel in archaeology.

So, what do you think about that?

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