Nicole Kidman considers her new movie to be "a love letter" to her children.
The 49-year-old actress has two children, Sunday, eight, and Faith, five, with her husband Keith Urban as well as two adoptive children Isabella, 23, and Connor, 21, from her previous marriage to Tom Cruise.
Nicole plays adoptive mother Sue Brierley in ‘Lion’ – which is based on Saroo Brierley’s book ‘A Long Way Home’ – and she could completely relate to the character due to her own experience of adoption.
Speaking to Town & Country magazine, she said: "I can see now, for ‘Lion’, that it was important to me because I’m a mother with adopted children. This movie is a love letter to my children.
"[My character] Sue is deeply maternal and full of unconditional love, which is beautiful. That’s why I wanted to do it. I relate to that. I feel that for my own children who are adopted. It’s not about anything else other than ‘I wanted you.’ It’s that deep and personal, and whatever your journey is, I’m here to love and support you. That’s what I connected to."
Though her own experiences meant she could relate to her character, Nicole is adamant it is a story that can be enjoyed by all.
She said previously: "Obviously I have adopted children. It takes a village to raise children.
"The power of good love, there’s nothing like it, and where it comes from and how you get it. But the nurturing quality of good love is extraordinary. The power of somebody wanting to find home, I think, is just a wonderful, cinematic story."
Nicole Kidman: My movie Lion is a love letter to my children
