Nicole Kidman says she was paid “nothing” for her iconic AMC ad.The Babygirl actress starred in the commercial to support the movie theaters during COIVD.Kidman previously said Olivia Rodrigo’s tribute to the commercial won her “major points” with her daughters Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret.

Nicole Kidman’s AMC ad has become a pop culture moment in itself, with everyone from Olivia Rodrigo to Sabrina Carpenter putting their own riff on the now-iconic 2021 commercial. Despite creating its own genre of cinematic magic, Kidman said executives had no idea how viral the ad would become at the time.

While chatting with Jimmy Fallon during a March 2 episode of his eponymous show, the Scarpetta actress revealed that it was a struggle to get the passion project off the ground. Kidman had to call in “all these favors” to make it happen, as she was working with an extremely limited budget and team. The paltry paycheck, apparently, didn’t factor at all into her decision.

Nicole Kidman during an interview with host Jimmy Fallon on Monday, March 2, 2026.

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“We did it for nothing, and then it went off,” she told the talk show personality on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Kidman tapped cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth and screenwriter Billy Ray for the pro bono project, appealing to their desire to help struggling movie theaters during the pandemic.

“I said, ‘Should we do this? We need to help the theaters.’ It was during COVID when we did it,” Kidman continued. “The crew that I was working with on Being the Ricardos—I said, ‘Would you guys be willing to do this?’”

Nicole Kidman appearing on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’ on Monday, March 2, 2026.

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In hindsight, the commercial—which shows a pinstripe suit-clad Kidman eating popcorn—has since become a viral meme. “We come to this place for magic. We come to AMC theater to love, to cry, to care. Because we need that—all of us,” she said, before finishing with the famous line: “Heartbreak feels good in a place like this.”

While Kidman might not have gotten monetary compensation for her appearance in the AMC ad, it gave her internet notoriety and cool mom status with her lookalike daughters, Sunday Rose and Faith Margaret.

Nicole Kidman is seen leaving ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’ on December 16, 2024 in New York City.

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After the Olivia Rodrigo posted a TikTok video recreating the clip on her Guts World Tour in 2024, Kidman shared it to her own Instagram Stories, with the comment: “You just won me some major points with my girls! Adore you @oliviarodrigo xx.”