Ever since Nicole Kidman and Naomi Watts met as teenagers 40 years ago, they have enjoyed a friendship that has stood the test of time.
Their relationship has weathered career highs and lows, love affairs, marriages, children, separations, divorces and even the deaths of loved ones.
Lasting longer than almost all Hollywood marriages, it really is a union that screams friendship goals.
Let’s take a look back at Naomi Watts and Nicole Kidman’s relationship timeline from how they became friends to what they have said about each other during their enduring friendship.
READ MORE: A trip to the mall at 14 changed Gisele Bundchen’s life
Kidman, now 56, and Watts, 55, met as teenagers while growing up in Sydney, but neither were born in Australia.
Kidman was born in Hawaii on June 20, 1967, while her parents were studying there.
After briefly moving to Washington DC, they returned to Australia a few years later and settled in Sydney. She attended Lane Cove Public School then North Sydney Girls’ High School.
After deciding to become an actress, she started attending Phillip Street Theatre.
READ MORE: Sad reason Shelley Duvall retreated from Hollywood after The Shining
Meanwhile, Naomi Watts was born in England on September 28, 1968.
When she was 14, she moved to Sydney with her mother, brother and stepfather. She attended Mosman High School and North Sydney Girls High School – the same school as Kidman.
“She made me her sister. Her smaller sister. Nicole epitomises for me the word ‘sisterhood'”
She also reportedly attended Phillip Street Theatre.
There are various reports around when and how exactly Kidman and Watts first became friends.
READ MORE: Ali Larter’s struggle after Hollywood fame
In an Instagram post to mark Watt’s 50th birthday in 2018, Kidman said it also marked their 35th anniversary as friends.
According to a 2017 story in The Guardian, the two were part of a wider group of school friends who would go out together.
By 1983, Kidman, then 16, made her film debut in the film Bush Christmas, followed by the action comedy BMX Bandits.
She followed this with roles in the 1986 film Windrider, the 1987 miniseries Vietnam and the 1988 Aussie film Emerald City.
Her next film was the 1989 Aussie thriller, Dead Calm, opposite Sam Neill and Billy Zane, which would launch her career in the US.
Meanwhile, Watts tried her hand at modelling in Japan, before returning to Australia to concentrate on acting.
She appeared in the 1986 film, For Love Alone, but struggled to win roles after that.
She was reportedly at the 1989 premiere of Dead Calm when she met director John Duigan, who suggested she take a supporting role in his new film, which was set to star Kidman.
The 1991 film, Flirting, was a hit. It also cemented Kidman and Watts’ friendship.
Watts previously told Vulture, “We already knew each other but that’s when our friendship forged.”
In a 2020 interview with Adelaide Now, Watts recalled filming together.
“One thing for certain we experienced is that friends can work together very, very well and we all just rooted for each other and it was wonderful,” she said.
“We brought all of our old history into the room and we had a shorthand in terms of how we wanted to get things done, and just had good times all along the way.”
Of course, by the time the film was released in 1991, Kidman had appeared in the 1990 film Days of Thunder, opposite Tom Cruise, who would soon become her husband.
Oddly, Watts had recently filmed a 30-second TV ad that saw her character win a radio-station competition offering a date with Tom Cruise, only to turn it down because ‘Mum’s doing a lamb roast’.
In the early 1990s, Kidman became a rising Hollywood star, with a role in the film Billy Bathgate earning her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
“Growing up with you, having you close, has been one of the more meaningful aspects of this journey”
Watts, meanwhile, appeared in the ABC miniseries Brides of Christ and Home and Away before deciding to try her luck in LA, with Kidman using her newfound star power to introduce her to agents.
She won a small role in a John Goodman film before returning to Australia to star in three movies.
On her return to the US, she found it hard to find work or an agent, and struggled to pay her rent. Luckily, she had her friend by her side.
“I ran out of money and became quite lonely, but Nic gave me company and encouragement to carry on,” she once said.
She spent close to a decade slogging away, often close to giving up her dream. Through it all, Kidman offered encouragement and support.
In 2015, Watts touched on this during a speech when she presented Kidman with an award at the Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards.
“Back in the day, you fuelled me with hope and encouragement. You kept saying, ‘Nai, one thing, one thing. That’s all it takes. It will change everything’. And it’s only later that I realised the true power of that statement,” she told the audience.
“She took me under her wing and she made me her sister. Her smaller sister. Nicole epitomises for me the word ‘sisterhood’.”
After years of struggle, Watts’ big break came when she was cast in David Lynch’s psychological thriller Mulholland Drive. After two years and a failed TV pilot, the film finally premiered at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival and made Watts the star Kidman always thought she would be.
In November 2001, Kidman presented Watts with a Movieline award for breakthrough performance for her role in the film.
Backstage, Kidman said it was only fitting that she would present the award.
“She came to my premieres or she’d come to Tom [Cruise]’s premieres and supported me,” Kidman said.
“Finally, to be able to give back to her on the same level is really lovely.”
That same year, it was Watts’ turn to support her friend when Cruise filed for divorce.
During a 2005 interview with The Telegraph, Kidman reflected on their friendship.
“Naomi Watts and I are very, very good friends and have maintained that through so many things,” she said.
“I think that’s really rare, particularly for actresses, and I take a lot of pride in that.”
Backstage after Watts presented Kidman with her Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards, Kidman agreed that they were more like sisters than friends.
“[We have] known each other since we were teenagers,” Kidman said.
“And actually, when I was thinking about it, it’s like my sister giving me this award tonight.
“We’re like sisters. I mean, we’ve known each other for so long, through so many things. And this is the kind of the sidebar of our life. Really, our life is all the personal stuff.”
In 2017, the two sat together at the Michael Kors Collection Spring Runway Show in New York and were later pictured backstage.
In 2018, Kidman took to Instagram to celebrate Watts’ 50th birthday and 35 years of friendship.
“Happy birthday to my gorgeous friend Nai — IT’S A BIG ONE! Friends for the last 35 years, here’s to another 35 together and celebrating with your girlfriends. Love you so much,” Kidman wrote.
Watts returned the favour in June 2018, posting a throwback pic of the pair.
“Happy birthday to this incredible woman who has inspired, impressed and supported me for more than three decades. I absolutely love you,” she wrote along with the hashtag #soulsisters.
The following year she posted another throwback pic to wish her “extraordinary friend” a happy birthday and reflect on their relationship.
“Growing up with you, having you close, has been one of the more meaningful aspects of this journey. My love, respect and admiration for you is next level,” Watts wrote.
“Keep being the inspiration that you are. Let’s take up Bridge or Bingo soon. I love you madly, deeply.”
In March 2022, Watts told Good Day New York she and Kidman wanted to make another movie together “so we can have good, lengthy conversations on a daily basis and share meals.”
“We’ve been talking about it for too long, we’ve gotta make it happen,” she said
“Now that we’re getting to the age where it’s like, we just want to spend more time with each other.”
In June 2023, Watts took to Instagram to wish her “darling friend” a happy birthday.
“Here’s to more years of deep friendship and fun adventures. Love you to the moon. So grateful for your love and support.”
Just this week, Kidman shared a photo of herself and Watts with actress Sarah Snook after they watched her star in the London production of The Picture of Dorian Gray.