Nicole Kidmanhas become known over her long career for playing enigmatic, yet strong characters.She is a five-time Oscar nominee, and she took home a win for her 2003 role inThe Hours. She’s played everyone fromVirginia WoolftoLucille Ball, but lately she’s proven how skilled she is at playing wealthy women with some serious secrets. Kidmanwon an Emmyin 2017 for her role as Celeste Wright in the HBO hit series,Big Little Lies, and played a similar ice queen character in 2020’sThe Undoing. Her latest role as Greer Garrison Winbury in Netflix’sThe Perfect Couplefurther establishes that Kidman knows her way around a twisty mystery, buther role in Hulu’sNine Perfect Strangerspreviously illustrated her talents in the genre.
‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ Is a Mysterious and Compelling Drama
When the eight-episode series premiered in 2021, Kidman got a lot of attention for her long, white-blond wig and (sometimes questionable) Russian accent. But the buzz surrounding the show also consisted of fans talking about how intriguing the series was and howKidman was clearly the standoutin the ensemble cast. The series,based on aLiane Moriartybookof the same name, follows nine individuals as they embark on a spiritual journey at a health and wellness retreat called Tranquillium House.
Kidman plays Masha Dmitrichenko, the ethereal beauty who runs the center. Her employees, Yao (Manny Jacinto) and Delilah (Tiffany Boone), sometimes question Masha’s more non-traditional methods. The nine guests include Napoleon (Michael Shannon) and Heather Marconi (Asher Keddie) and their daughter, Zoe (Grace Van Patten),a family who is reelingafter the death of Zoe’s twin brother; Frances Welty (Melissa McCarthy), a writer who’s been burned by an Internet romance; Lars Lee (Luke Evans), a handsome man with a hidden agenda for attending the spa; Ben (Melvin Gregg) and Jessica Chandler (Samara Weaving), happy newlyweds who have a surprising reason for their wealth; Tony Hogburn (Bobby Cannavale), a former football player struggling with addiction; and Carmel Schneider (Regina Hall), a single mother who’s trying to cope with her husband leaving her.
As the nine guests try to cohabitate together in this lush, pristine environment in California, they start to notice that Masha’s techniques go far beyond simply encouraging them to eat a healthier diet or to get in touch with their spiritual side.Several strange events occur, which force each person to doubt Masha and her motives. Is she truly acting out of her desire to help these people or is she just messing with them for her own enjoyment? Or could both be at play here?
Every episode reveals a little bit more about each of the guests so that their identities and what they’re truly struggling with are depicted in greater detail. Each of them is broken by something life has thrown at them, andtheir mental health is suffering. But they are able to use each other as support to help them climb out of their respective holes. Between Masha floating around in an eerie way and the dream-like (sometimes dangerous) situations that arise, the guests begin wondering if the folks at Tranquillium House are hiding something.The series' toneswitches back and forth from humor (mostly via McCarthy) to horror, which makes each episode a wild ride.
How to Watch ‘Nine Perfect Strangers’: Where to Stream Nicole Kidman’s Addictive New Drama
It’s not Big Little Lies Season 3 but it’s close enough!
Although all the characters in the series are fascinating in their messiness, Masha is clearly the most damaged. At first, it seems like Masha is just a better version of everyone else (she abstains from sugar, has a daily meditation practice, etc.), and it’s clear from the locale that she has so far been extremely successful with her finances. She seems to be running a resort that caters topeople doing pretty well in life. But reallyMasha is running from her own trauma-filled pastjust as much as the people she’s trying to treat. As the episodes unfold, there are more flashes of Masha’s temper, which points to the fact thatshe’s not as sereneas she pretends to be. She also makes herself sit at the bottom of the pool, signifying that she’s always pushing herself to her limits. There are a lot of layers to Masha, and the reality of that ends up poking holes in the picture-perfect appearance she tries to project.
This ability to portray someone with otherworldly beauty who is still extremely damagedhas become Kidman’s calling card. Because of her past, Masha is constantly trying to outrun her own pain, and this leads to her using methods of healing that could be either brilliant or kind of disturbing. Because Kidman plays Masha as a woman who is verging on being unstable, there is an element of unease that helps the series become a thrilling journey. No one staying at Tranquillium House knows what to expect, and neither does the viewer. With a less capable actor, Masha would be a caricature (especially with the accent). However, withKidman’s ability to channel authentic emotions, Masha is a cryptic, often inscrutable figure who is inherently interesting. Does Masha hold some magical ability or is she just able to see what people need in order to heal? And there’s a third possibility as well: could Masha just be a charlatan who’s charging big bucks to people who are looking for a quick fix to their emotional problems?
Nine Perfect Strangersgives Kidman the chance tobring another complicated woman to the screen.One reviewer notedthat Masha is “another deep and challenging role,” and although the series is more of an ensemble drama, it does give Kidman plenty of scenery to chew. Plus, when it debuted in August 2021, it was themost-watched original series that had ever aired on Huluat the time. In June 2023, it was announced that the limited serieswould actually be coming back for a second season. Kidman will return as Masha, with even more star-studded supporting cast members that includeMurray Bartlett,Annie Murphy,Christine Baranski,andHenry Golding. Although there’s no official release date yet, it is exciting that Kidman will get the opportunity to dig even further into this complex character.
Season 1 ofNine Perfect Strangersis available to stream on Hulu in the U.S.
Nine Perfect Strangers
Watch on Hulu
