Cover Girl

I’ve been mulling over how a single image can make such an impact. Nicole Kidman on the cover of Perfect magazine is one: a blueprint of how an audaciously shot, styled and retouched picture can cut through all the noise and still generate comment, over a week after its release.

Nicole Kidman will always pique people’s interest: she’s a genuine A-list star. Put her in a micro-mini, give her a weird hairstyle and shoot her flexing abs and delts that would make The Rock feel insecure, and you’re ready to break the internet. 

First came the “how to be buff after 50” stories, for nothing excites a British features desk more than a 50+ celebrity doing something unexpected from which they can springboard a slew of think pieces.

Then came the “would you do the jellyfish” stories, which are destined to run all week. For those living under a rock, the jellyfish is a short-at-the-front, long-at-the-back haircut that’s been doing the rounds on Tiktok for aeons, long before the Nicole pic dropped. But someone has linked the two: cue #jellyfishhaircut having 10m views, and one of its biggest proponents, Mari Trombley (@sillyyerba) being interviewed by the New York Times. As I type, a British tabloid is probably persuading one of its interns to have a jellyfish cut in exchange for a byline.

The lesson? Magazine covers are still important (see also: Linda Evangelista on the cover of British Vogue). Pounce on them and bounce off them as fast as you can.