Nicole Kidman returns to Aussie television with highly anticipated Top Of The Lake: China Doll
NICOLE Kidman’s first Aussie TV series in almost 30 years has become the drama event of the year, with stunned critics falling over themselves to heap praise upon the Hollywood superstar.
- Critics weigh in on Top Of The Lake: China Doll
- Elisabeth Moss says viewers are in a treat for season two
NICOLE Kidman’s first Aussie TV series in almost 30 years has become the drama event of the year, with stunned critics falling over themselves to heap praise upon the Hollywood superstar.
Foxtel’s much anticipated Top Of The Lake: China Girl, which begins on BBC First this Sunday, is the second season of Academy Award-winning director Jane Campion’s chilling drama and looks like it will eclipse the acclaimed first instalment, as the action moves from sleepy rural New Zealand to bustling Sydney.
Also starring Gwendoline Christie, who has risen to fame playing the fearsome Brienne of Tarth in Game Of Thrones, the series features the return of The Handmaid’s Tale’s Elisabeth Moss, whose performance alongside Kidman has astounded critics.
“These two women join forces to make this unmissable TV and more proof they are both actors truly in their prime,” wrote The Daily Telegraph’s Holly Byrnes.
And Foxtel’s head of television Brian Walsh told The Daily Telegraph he’s been overwhelmed by the response to the drama ahead of its Aussie debut.
“Top Of The Lake marks Nicole’s first Australian television role since Bangkok Hilton way back in 1989 and, wow, is she back in a big way,” Mr Walsh said. “It caps off what has been a stunning year for her, off the back of her acclaimed performances in Lion and The Beguiled — and of course, our HBO series, Big Little Lies.”
Earlier this year Top Of The Lake: China Girl made history as the first TV series to screen at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in May, with US magazine Entertainment Weekly noting the “sustained standing ovation” it received.
Since then, Moss has confirmed her status as one of the world’s most celebrated actors and has been nominated for an Emmy for her turn in The Handmaid’s Tale.
The second season of Top Of The Lake sees Moss’s character of Detective Robin Griffin leave New Zealand to work in Sydney. However, the wounds from her past are opened when a body is washed up on Bondi Beach.
Hype surrounding the show has hit such heights in the UK that the BBC made all six episodes of the miniseries immediately available on its streaming service after it premiered.
BBC drama controller Pier Wenger said the unconventional decision gave viewers the “opportunity to get engrossed into all six episodes at once”.
The show’s executive producer Jamie Laurenson added: “We think the series has all the compulsive qualities that will make watching more than one episode at a time irresistible.”
Top of the Lake: China Girl premieres on Foxtel’s BBC First on Sunday at 8.30pm
Originally published as Nicole Kidman returns to Aussie television with highly anticipated Top Of The Lake: China Doll
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