Nicole Kidman AMC Theatres commercial

In September 2021, AMC Theatres began airing a commercial starring actress Nicole Kidman in its theaters and on television. The ad, written by screenwriter Billy Ray, was intended to spur theater attendance following the COVID-19 pandemic by highlighting the "magic" of the movie theater experience.

In the ad, Kidman enters and sits alone in an empty AMC theater while delivering a monologue describing in heightened language the pleasures of the moviegoing experience, such as the "indescribable feeling we get when the lights begin to dim and we go somewhere we've never been before". The commercial became a surprise hit among audiences, with its earnestly rhapsodic style and script—particularly the line "Somehow, heartbreak feels good in a place like this."—developing a certain camp appeal. It has inspired Internet memes, parodies, and in-theatre audience participation rituals.

Description

The ad begins outside an AMC cineplex, with a shot of high-heeled shoes stepping through a puddle, reflecting an illuminated "AMC" sign. Kidman lowers an oversized ("Jedi-like") hood and enters the building, making her way into an empty theater. She takes her seat, the lights dim, and clips from several films appear onscreen before her, including Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Jurassic World, Creed (all 2015), La La Land (2016), and Wonder Woman (2017). Throughout the 60-second spot, Kidman delivers a rhapsodic monologue on the pleasures of the moviegoing experience, partly via voice-over and partly delivered straight to the camera. The commercial ends with the AMC Theatres logo and the tagline "We make movies better". Throughout the ad, Kidman wears a gray-blue suit with shiny silver pinstripes. The 30 and 15-second versions change the films Kidman watches on the screen, including A Star is Born and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (both 2018). The 2024 update changed the films to Elvis and Avatar: The Way of Water (both 2022).

Production

The commercial was directed by brothers Jeff Cronenweth and Tim Cronenweth. Kidman suggested the duo after having worked with Jeff Cronenweth on the 2021 film Being the Ricardos. Kidman also selected friend and screenwriter Billy Ray to write the commercial's script. Kidman had previously worked with Ray on the 2015 film Secret in Their Eyes. Barkley Inc. worked with AMC on the campaign.

The ad was shot at the AMC cineplex in Porter Ranch, a suburb north of Los Angeles, during a single weekend while Kidman was on a break from filming Being the Ricardos.[2] An elevated platform was constructed for Kidman to sit on to achieve a shot where beams of light from the movie projector play around her head.

The ad was conceived at a time when AMC Theatres, and movie theaters as a whole, appeared to be in a precarious situation, with audience numbers still far below levels from before the COVID-19 pandemic (see Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cinema). Kidman's husband Keith Urban explained that it was "a no-brainer" for Kidman to participate in the commercial since "she loves movies" and it was a way to help the theater because of the pandemic. According to Variety, AMC spent $25 million on the ad campaign, with television airtime being the highest expense.

The 60-second commercial was also edited down to 30- and 15-second versions.

Release

The ad began airing on television in September 2021. It was also played at AMC's 600 United States theater locations, as well as in nine European countries through Odeon Cinemas Group after the coming attractions. According to AMC, this was the first national ad campaign from a movie theater chain.

Impact

The commercial's grand style and the earnest melodrama of Kidman's monologue have led the commercial to be appreciated as an artifact of camp. The commercial has been the subject of Internet memes, parodies, merchandise, and audience participation rituals. The line "Somehow, heartbreak feels good in a place like this" has been singled out as particularly memorable. Reflecting later on the commercial's impact, Billy Ray stated that this was "the best line I ever wrote".

In-person demonstrations of affection for the ad by theater-goers have included cheering (particularly at the line "Somehow, heartbreak feels good in a place like this"), saluting, and reciting the script in time with Kidman. According to Vanity Fair, fans of the ad have also created shirts with Kidman's face on them, mash-up videos, TikToks, and even an eight-minute shot-by-shot analysis.[3] The outfit Kidman is wearing in the ad has also become a very popular meme and become quite popular to dress up as during 2022. According to Vulture, it was one of the "Best Meme Halloween Costumes" of 2022.[4] Adam M. Aron, the chairman of AMC reported observing these unexpected audience reactions within weeks of the ad's debut. A significant indicator of the commercial's cult following came in December 2021 when AMC began showing a reduced 30-second version in theaters in conjunction with the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, which omitted the "heartbreak" line. The decision sparked outraged responses from fans, including a jocular Change.org petition demanding that AMC restore the "Kidman cut" (an allusion to the "Snyder cut" campaign). AMC relented and returned to showing the full-length version. Kidman expressed surprise upon hearing of the ad's following in a January 2022 interview. Urban noted that he and Kidman never expected "in a million years... that [it would] be this cultural thing". At the 95th Academy Awards, host Jimmy Kimmel included a joke about the ad during his opening monologue.[5]

Some of the various parodies included:

In response to audiences turning her into a meme, Kidman expressed that she has no regrets about her viral AMC campaign, saying, "You can meme me as much as you want."[2]

When AMC temporarily removed the ad ahead of the release of Kidman’s new film, Babygirl due to a policy restricting them from showing it before any film starring her, fans expressed outrage and again demanded its return; AMC relented and agreed to show it before her films.[15]

• The season 48 premiere of NBC's Saturday Night Live in October 2022, with Chloe Fineman as Kidman. The sketch received a strong positive response from viewers and fans, who praised its faithfulness to the commercial.[6]
• A trailer for Saw X (2023) in September 2023, with Billy the Puppet (voiced by Tobin Bell) in Kidman's place and watching scenes from the film in the theater.[7] Shortly after it went viral online, Lionsgate received a takedown notice, according to Josh Stolberg.[8]
• The opening segment of Live with Kelly and Mark's 2024 "After the Oscars" show parodies the commercial, with hosts Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos in Kidman's place watching themselves on the screen starring in parodies of Barbie (2023), The Princess Bride (1987), A Few Good Men (1992), Basic Instinct (1992) and Dirty Dancing (1987).[9]
• Olivia Rodrigo in March 2024 to promote her concert in Montréal.[10]
• Babyface in April 2024 to reveal his Las Vegas residency.[11]
• Morgan Freeman in April 2024 as a tribute to Kidman at the AFI Life Achievement Award event.[12][13]
• The cast of The Summer I Turned Pretty, featuring Gavin Casalegno, Lola Tung, Christopher Briney, Sean Kaufman, and Rain Spencer in June 2024.[14]

2024 update

Kidman's commercial was initially set to run until August 2022, for the duration of her one-year contract as the spokesperson for AMC. In August 2022, AMC's CEO Adam Aron announced that Kidman would be signed as a spokesperson for another year.[16] He also remarked that aligning with Kidman has been one of the most astute marketing strategies he’s been involved in over the past four decades.[17] Later the same month, Billy Ray stated that he had written a script for a follow-up, describing it as taking a "very different approach that is a little bit of a wink to the one we've already done". Ray teased that the sequel possibly featured Kidman and more A-list actors.[18]

By May 2023, a version of another commercial had been written. Still, Aron was uncertain if that would result in the final product. Aron added that AMC hoped to have the new commercial debut later in 2023 or 2024 and hoped it would "live up to [audience's] expectations". Beginning March 1, 2024, AMC introduced three new 30-second versions of the commercials that would appear before films, on a rotating basis; this was meant to replace the 60-second version that had been in use for the previous four years. In March 2024, Kidman expressed her desire "to be onstage doing it with a drag queen."[19] In October 2024, Kidman confirmed that the sequel was in the process.[20]