Nicole Kidman's Biggest Makeup Mistakes

Nicole Kidman is an icon who rarely makes a beauty mishap. But it's easy to look good when you're so naturally stunning. Kidman's makeup artist Kate Synnott told Byrdie she keeps the star's glam to a minimum when getting her ready for big events. "My main trick for Nicole is not to use any heavy products for her base as her skin is so incredible. I want her natural skin glow to show through the makeup," she said. And the less-is-more method clearly works, because Kidman is stunning with minimal makeup.

But although the actor and her team have clearly honed their beauty tricks over the years, Kidman has still experienced a few fails. From more than one awkward powder flashback to distracting blush, we're looking back at the makeup mistakes that only make this superstar more relatable.

In 2015, Nicole Kidman walked the red carpet for the New York premiere of "Nine" and made the same awkward makeup mistake as Reba McEntire; the dreaded powder flashback. She had unflattering white marks under both eyes and on her nose, caused by powders not compatible with flash photography. 

Very often, these translucent products contain silica, which aren't visible naked eye, but are picked up by a camera flash. The worst part? It wasn't the only time the wrong powder ruined her makeup. When Kidman appeared at the 2015 Crystal + Lucy Awards, her makeup artist made the same mistake which left her with white patches down the side of the nose. 

To avoid the issue, we'd recommend Kidman's team ditching silica-containing powders. Instead, skin color powders will make any flashback less visible.

When Nicole Kidman stepped out around 1990, she played up her lips and eyes — and the results weren't the most flattering. She wore black liner around her eyes with a heavy black shadow, which she paired with a bold red lip. The problem was, the two together were too harsh and aged the beauty, who was only around 23 at the time. Her eye makeup could have been softened with more blending or by adding a softer brown shade along the edges. 

In addition, though eyebrows can be hard to get right, hers seemed untouched. A few light-handed strokes using a light brown pencil would have helped soften her features and dialled back the years.

Though Nicole Kidman and her glam team have done a great job of matching her face makeup to her body over the years (which isn't easy with very fair skin), she made a rare misstep in 2010. The beauty appeared at the Academy of Country Music Awards in 2010 in a black and white military-style mini dress with long sleeves and cuffed sleeves. She showed her tan, toned legs, which only made the lightness of her foundation more obvious. 

Though you don't always have to exactly match your face to your body, sometimes a stark difference can leave the face looking flat and devoid of color. Though Kidman's vibrant lipstick shade helped bring a healthy glow back to her skin, a little more bronzer would have made the difference less obvious.

Nicole Kidman looked gorgeous at the 2024 Met Gala, but her blush was distracting. The pink shade was spread all the way across her cheeks and, although the dewy color was flattering, the placement seemed off. The product was applied close to the Australian star's nose and far down on either side of her face, taking up a lot of room on either side of her face.

If we were Kidman's makeup artist, we'd have applied the rouge a little higher to lift the star's face, as higher placement with a little contour underneath can bring more structure to the face. However, we do give the "A Family Affair" star a little grace, because if there's anywhere to experiment with hair, makeup, and clothes it's at the Met Gala. Just ask Blake Lively, who's had some stunning Met Gala looks.