Nicole Kidman was in awe the first time she met ex-husband Tom Cruise, insisting she was a nervous wreck. New York Premiere of ‘Lion’ – Arrivals. The Australian star first met Cruise while auditioning for 1990’s Days of Thunder and she admits when she initially saw him she felt she wouldn’t land the role because she was a mess of nerve. “I remember walking in, I remember being so nervous and seeing Tom Cruise drive up in a Porsche, I think it was,” she tells People.com. “He got out of the car and walked through and I was like, ‘Ah…’ My jaw dropped. Then I had to go in and audition in front of (late director) Tony Scott, sweet Tony, (producers) Don Simpson, Jerry Bruckheimer, Robert Towne and Tom. I was like, ‘No way, I’m not going to get this’
The 49-year-old called her mum after landing the role, which she credits for jump starting her career in the U.S. “I was just like, ‘Oh my God, mom!’ Yeah, that was huge. Huge,” she says. “You know, obviously, (it) changed my life extraordinarily. So grateful for the film, for everything that came with it. It was a big, important part of my life.” Nicole and Tom’s romance blossomed on the set of the film and they wed shortly after the film was released, adopting two children. The marriage was doomed, however, and they divorced in 2001. Now married to singer Keith Urban, the actress insists she still has fond memories of her time with Tom: “(It was) a beautiful marriage and all of those things that came out of it. Two beautiful children. The rest is history.”