Nicole Kidman AMC Theatres commercial

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. 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 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. Adam M. Aron, the chairman of AMC reported observing these unexpected audience reactions within weeks of the ad's debut. Some of the various parodies included: • 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. • 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. Shortly after it went viral online, Lionsgate received a takedown notice, according to Josh Stolberg. • The opening segment of Live with Kelly and Marks 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). • Olivia Rodrigo in March 2024 to promote her concert in Montréal. • Babyface in April 2024 to reveal his Las Vegas residency. • Morgan Freeman in April 2024 as a tribute to Kidman at the AFI Life Achievement Award event. • The cast of The Summer I Turned Pretty, featuring Gavin Casalegno, Lola Tung, Christopher Briney, Sean Kaufman, and Rain Spencer in June 2024. • The opening scene of the sixth episode on the final season of The Boys featuring the character Firecracker in May 2026. 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." ==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. 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. 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". 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". In October 2024, Kidman confirmed that the sequel was in the process. ==References==