During the height of the Covid pandemic, Nicole Kidman and her husband, Keith Urban, were nestled in their two-acre estate located in Nashville, Tennessee.

For many couples, the extended lockdowns posed challenges, but the Oscar-winning actress and the country singer took this time to rekindle their relationship, according to an insider from the Daily Mail.

In fact, the couple – who enjoyed ‘amazing’ physical chemistry – only grew closer during those cozy months on the family farm.

And ‘Nic’ wasn’t Urban’s only doting nickname for his wife – ‘sexy’ and ‘babe’ were also some of his go-to monikers for the red-headed bombshell.

This may explain why, when news broke on Monday about Kidman, 58, and Urban, 57, ending their 19-year marriage, the Australian actress was reportedly unaware of her husband’s sudden resolve to part ways.

Kidman’s initial shock was short-lived. On Tuesday, she filed for divorce, citing ‘irreconcilable differences’ in documents acquired by the Daily Mail.

For his part, a source told the Daily Mail on Monday that Urban had become increasingly unhappy with the lack of intimacy in the marriage.

‘The intimacy has faded, they’re merely going through the motions of marriage. Keith confronted her about his discontent,’ revealed the source.

But that may only be half the story.

In a surprising turn, a source from Nashville’s music scene disclosed to the Daily Mail: ‘Rumor has it he’s involved with a younger woman in the industry. It’s the talk of the town. Everyone is curious about her identity, but for now, it’s still unclear.’

Following Kidman’s highly publicized divorce from her first husband Tom Cruise in 2001, the Australian actress found love once again with New Zealand-born Urban. 

They married in June 2006 and later welcomed two daughters – Sunday Rose, 17, and Faith Margaret, 14. 

But just four months after tying the knot, Urban’s substance abuse struggles threatened to tear the family apart.

Kidman was forced to stage an intervention over Urban’s alcoholism, and the singer was sent to a rehab center in October 2006 – his second time in clinc after a previous stint in 1998.

Urban spent the next three months of their new marriage in rehab. And, according to a second source, it was a time that played a key role in forming their unconventional dynamic for the years to come.

‘She behaves not only like his wife but also like his mother,’ the second insider said.

‘He’s been in rehab twice and she told him if it happens again it’ll be the end of their marriage. She definitely wears the pants in the family. She takes charge, makes major decisions and Keith doesn’t seem to like it. But for the sake of peace and quiet he let her get her way. I’ve seen the break up coming for years.’

Jump forward to 2021 and with Covid lockdown restrictions lifting across America, Hollywood came back in full swing – and so did Kidman’s busy work schedule.

Approaching her seventh decade, she took on a series of steamy, age-defying roles such as her 2024 film Babygirl and, most recently, relocated to London this summer while filming the sequel to her 1998 movie Practical Magic.

Urban, meanwhile, focused on his music. These past months he has been occupied on his High and Alive World Tour, which is scheduled through October. He is due to perform in Pennsylvania on Thursday.

That second insider explained how Kidman is ‘especially concerned’ for her husband when he’s touring because ‘she’s worried he’s going to fall off the wagon again.’

For his part, Urban has often credited Kidman’s determination and devotion in helping him overcome his addiction.

While presenting his wife with the AFI Life Achievement Award in April last year, he even so much as admitted that his alcohol addiction nearly ‘blew our marriage to smithereens.’

‘I had no idea what was going to happen to us,’ he said. 

‘Nic pushed through every negative voice, I’m sure even some of her own and she chose love.’

In the end, it seems that choosing love wasn’t always enough.

While it’s understood that Urban was the one to initiate the separation this week, it appears Kidman was the one to put the final nail in the coffin. 

Despite initial reports that the couple had actually been separated since June, court documents obtained by the Daily Mail listed their date of separation as September 30, the same date she filed for divorce.

According to TMZ reports, Urban has ‘acquired his own residence in Nashville and has moved out.’

Kidman and their children remain at the $4million family home they own in the city – the same home where just five years ago, in that long Covid lockdown, nothing could’ve torn this couple apart.

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Kidman and Urban for comment.