When Nicole Kidman divorced Tom Cruise, the photos following the process of Kidman openly celebrating and walking down the street went viral and now lives in infamy.
The photos express such clear joy that Kidman escaped from her marriage with Cruise, and nothing will ever really quite match it unless it's 100% serious.
People have used that photo to express joy at their own divorces, leaving their jobs, or other toxic situations that caused their unhappiness.
handing in my notice tonight for a job that has caused me nothing but stress for the last six years and afterwards I know I'm gonna feel like Nicole Kidman after signing the divorce papers to Tom Cruisepic.twitter.com/YYthOCRfbp— Niamh\ud83c\udf1b (@Niamh\ud83c\udf1b) 1630158111
Current mood: those pictures taken of Nicole Kidman after she signed her divorce papers from Tom Cruise.pic.twitter.com/giEWUPHF0Y— \ud83d\udca7Jheri \ud83d\udc97\ud83d\udc9c\ud83d\udc99 (+1d4) (@\ud83d\udca7Jheri \ud83d\udc97\ud83d\udc9c\ud83d\udc99 (+1d4)) 1629873708
separating my phone bill from ex-oomf got me feeling like Nicole Kidman when she left her lawyer\u2019s office after getting her divorce papers officializedpic.twitter.com/Ubgk6TCfAh— blent girl (@blent girl) 1630421279
And one woman's actual divorce got the picture, the outfit FROM the picture, and an entire party thrown for it to celebrate her freedom from her ex-spouse.
At a Divorce Party for @LizMaupin who had the outfit from Nicole Kidman\u2019s iconic divorce photo custom madepic.twitter.com/AG2I327PCN— grace spelman (@grace spelman) 1630294241
DID i get Nicole Kidman\u2019s divorce outfit created for a party for the day my divorce is final? yes i didpic.twitter.com/ppBBaz0gc6— Liz Maupin (@Liz Maupin) 1630294736
Liz Maupin, the woman in the photograph, and her ex separated close to three years ago, but the divorce was only final very recently.
"I wanted to celebrate the finality of it and starting a new chapter in my life," she said to Buzzfeed. "I love that photo of Nicole so much. I think it says so much about relief and freedom."
Iconichttps://twitter.com/LizMaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— LN (@LN) 1630377334
I love thishttps://twitter.com/LizMaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— Omo Get Inside (@Omo Get Inside) 1630372139
is this 30+ Twitterhttps://twitter.com/lizmaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— omega variant (@omega variant) 1630367647
This is extremely my vibe to do this one dayhttps://twitter.com/LizMaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— Annie Armstrong (@Annie Armstrong) 1630364827
Omg\u2026this is everythinghttps://twitter.com/lizmaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— Ashley (@Ashley) 1630362764
Maupin's choice to leave her marriage was "super difficult," as she recounted, but ultimately ended up being the best choice for her, she said.
"It was absolutely empowering and so fun," said Maupin of the party to celebrate her divorce.
"I chose to make the party no-boys-allowed. We had an absolute blast. I highly recommend having a divorce party if you find yourself divorced someday."
Good for her.https://twitter.com/lizmaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— \u0282\u0188\u0105\u0f5e\u10e7 \u0199\u025b\u0f5e\u0131 (\u25d5\u203f\u25d5) (@\u0282\u0188\u0105\u0f5e\u10e7 \u0199\u025b\u0f5e\u0131 (\u25d5\u203f\u25d5)) 1630370428
Lmaooooo I LOVE THISSSSSSShttps://twitter.com/LizMaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— S. (@S.) 1630344831
Omg this is a power movehttps://twitter.com/lizmaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— Pan (@Pan) 1630343456
Lmfaooooo iconichttps://twitter.com/lizmaupin/status/1432186046851137537\u00a0\u2026— \ud835\ude7c\ud835\ude98\ud835\ude8c\ud835\ude91\ud835\ude8a \u2615\ufe0f (@\ud835\ude7c\ud835\ude98\ud835\ude8c\ud835\ude91\ud835\ude8a \u2615\ufe0f) 1630340777
Maupin says she also hopes to turn some of the stigma around divorce on its head by publicly celebrating.
"I think there's still stigma around divorce, which is so unnecessary, and I wanted to really have a positive experience at the end of it all and just celebrate being me again, without a tether to another person, and starting over," she said.
"Nicole's outfit definitely helped remind me of my newfound freedom."
Congratulations, Ms. Maupin and here's to a healthy future!
