By Benedict Brook,Joshua Haigh
Copyright news
Court documents obtained byThe New York Post show Kidman cited “irreconcilable differences” for the split.
A date of separation for the papers, filed in Nashville where the pair have a home, is listed as Tuesday, September 30.
The Australian star is seeking to be the “primary residential parent” for her and Urban’s two children: Sunday Rose, 17, and Faith Margaret, 14.
“It is anticipated that the parties will enter into a Marital Dissolution Agreement and an Agreed Permanent Parenting Plan that will be submitted to the Court for approval,” the filing states.
It’s been reported that the couple’s children will spend 306 days a year with Kidman and 59 days with Urban. They further agreed that all major decisions for the children, including education and health care, will be made jointly.
The detail in the papers is a clue that Kidman and Urban had already worked on the details of the split some time before it was made public.
Entertainment website TMZ first reported on Tuesday morning that multiple sources had confirmed that Kidman and her country music star husband have been living apart for several months.
“Sometimes relationships just run their course,” a source told the Post, adding that Kidman “did not want the separation and was trying to save things”.
The reports came as a huge shock to fans of the A-list pair, who are undoubtedly one of Hollywood’s most loved-up couples.
Page Six reported that Urban has moved out of their family home in Nashville, Tennessee, and bought a home of his own in the same city.
“[Kidman is] holding the family together through this difficult time since Keith has been gone,” a source told the outlet.
The couple have kept a low profile in recent months, last being seen together at the FIFA Club World Cup match in Nashville on June 20.
A week later, Kidman celebrated their 19th anniversary on Instagram, writing simply: “Happy anniversary baby,” alongside a candid photo of them together. Urban commented a love heart under the post, but did not share an anniversary post of his own.
Urban surprised fans last year when he held back tears as he confessed that he almost “blew” everything up when he was admitted into rehab shortly after their 2006 wedding.
“We got married in June 2006, and barely four months into our marriage, the addictions that I had done really nothing about blew our marriage to smithereens,” he told a packed auditorium at the Dolby Theatre in LA during an award show honouring his wife.
“I went into the Betty Ford Center for three months. Four months into a marriage, and I’m in rehab for three months with no idea what was going to happen to us.”
But Urban said that it was Kidman, 58, was a godsend and “pushed through every negative voice — I’m sure even some of her own — and she chose love. And here we are tonight 18 years later.”
