Kidman Ain’t Kiddin’!

By JAMES GAGE | Reporter

Famous Palisadian Nicole Kidman is riding DC’s “Aquaman” wave as it soars all the way to $887 million at the global box office, becoming the highest-earning DCEU movie to date—a debut deluge that has defied analyst expectations and shrugged off early critical canards.

Kidman, who plays Aquaman’s briny and beautiful mother Atlanna, was a siren song on screen that drew droves of mothers to the movies over the holiday break (assisted, of course, by the hunk factor of “Aquaman” star Jason Momoa).

In fact, moms outnumbered dads in “Aquaman” attendance 56 percent to 44 percent over the break, giving the scaly superhero flick a stunning 84 percent gender score on Screen Engine’s PostTrak.

Kidman boosted viewership over the holidays with her “Aquamom” social media posts, enlisting her 13.4 million Instagram followers to see the movie while sporting a chiffon robe embroidered with the word “Aquamom.”

Directed by James Wan (“Conjuring,” “Saw”), “Aquaman” has grossed $259.7 million domestically since its December 21 release. Its worldwide cume stands at a staggering $887 million, sailing past “Justice League” ($658 million) and “Wonder Woman” ($821 million) and drowning out “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” ($873 million) to become the highest-grossing DCEU movie at the global box office.

If “Aquaman” stays afloat over the coming months, it might give “Avengers: Infinity War” ($2 billion) a run for its money—a good bet, since the movie has only been out for three weeks at the domestic box office.

While surfing on “Aquaman” success, Kidman’s performance as hard-boiled LAPD detective Erin Bell in Karyn Kusama’s new “Destroyer” was less favorably received, with some critics labeling the self-serious film a campy, over-the-top flop.

Kidman’s prosthetic face in the film has been the subject of some derision from online critics, who have called the waxen, beleaguered face of her character unintentionally comical. With a Christmas Day release, the film has grossed a paltry $259,977 domestically, eclipsed by its $9 million budget.

Kidman is also set to reprise her role as complex mom Celeste Wright on the Emmy Award-winning series “Big Little Lies,” with season 2 of the show slated for a June release on HBO.

Kidman let the cat out of the bag during CNN’s New Year’s Eve Live show, co-hosted by Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen, adding that she was “glad people are excited about [the new season].”

Acting legend Meryl Streep will make her first TV appearance since 2003 on the second season of “Big Little Lies,” where she will tackle the role of Mary Louise Wright, the mother of Celeste’s deceased husband Perry (Alexander Skårsgard).

Season 2 will see Reese Witherspoon return to her role as Madeline Martha Mackenzie and will also feature Kidman’s daughters, Sunday Rose (10) and Faith Margaret (7), as extras in the new season alongside Kidman’s husband and country-pop star Keith Urban.