Antonio Banderas Tried to Help Nicole Kidman ‘Feel Safe’ While Filming Erotic Thriller Babygirl (Exclusive)

Antonio Banderas enjoyed his time working with Nicole Kidman on Babygirl.

In Babygirl, Banderas, 64, and Kidman, 57, portray a married couple living in the New York City area whose relationship is threatened when Kidman’s character Romy begins an affair with a younger intern (Harris Dickinson). Banderas touched on his friendship with Kidman while he spoke with PEOPLE recently about his new Super Bowl commercial with Bosch, noting that he and Kidman first met when she saw him perform in Nine on Broadway back in 2003.

“I am a huge fan of her. She’s one of my favorite actors of all time, actually. I admire and respect her and now I think we have a beautiful relationship because sharing this movie was very special,” Banderas says.

“It was a very complicated movie, difficult,” he continues. “It required a lot from everybody, from the director, from all the actors, and we were conscious of that. And so you have to put yourself on the right path.”

“And it was very easy with her. She was totally committed to what she was doing. Kind, generous, professional,” Banderas adds of Kidman, who received nominations at the 2024 Gotham Awards and 2025 Golden Globe Awards for her performance in the film. “She made me feel safe. And I think I just tried the same to make her feel safe, especially those scenes that are complicated.”

Banderas also spoke glowingly of Babygirl‘s co-lead Dickinson, 28, who he described as “very kind” while he recalled how he and the younger actor worked together on a scene in which their characters get into a physical altercation after Banderas’ theater director character Jacob discovers the affair.

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“We were both very careful about all the movement, how to throw a punch, how to just grab, how to fall on the ground, getting on tables, breaking furniture, stuff like that,” Banderas says. “He was great working with, he’s got a great timing, and I felt very secure with him.”

The Paddington in Peru actor noted everyone involved in Babygirl knew they had “a certain responsibility” because they because “knew that the movie was going to create a lot of debate, on the side of the characters and against the characters.”

“We knew that when we were shooting,” he continues. “So we were prepared and everybody behaved very accordingly to just what was needed, what the director needed … I’m very happy I did that movie.”

Banderas’ ad with Bosch will air during the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9. The game itself will be broadcast on Fox and stream on Tubi.