AceShowbiz - Nicole Kidman struggled to shoot "Expats" amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Oscar-winning actress - who features in the new drama series alongside the likes of Ji-young Yoo, Jack Huston, and Sarayu Blue - has revealed that she struggled to deal with Hong Kong's strict COVID rules during the shoot.

"I said, 'I cannot, cannot do this.' It was like when a donkey just goes, 'I'm not going,' " Nicole, 56 - who is married to musician Keith Urban - told the Guardian newspaper.

"I was alone in Hong Kong without my family, which was a terrible mistake. I couldn't just get on a plane and get to them. And they couldn't get to me. That affected the performance, to the degree that it also affected my psyche."

"But it was like the domestic violence storyline in 'Big Little Lies'. I think, people go through this, my job is to be the conduit and perform it to its absolute authentic truth. And if I'm not doing that, then I'm not serving why I work as an actor, which is to artistically connect to the way life is, in all its pain and glory."

Nicole previously acknowledged that travel is part and parcel of her work. However, the actress also confessed to missing her family while she's away from home.

Nicole told the Radio Times, "When I was single and I would travel, a lot of it was lonely. Being slightly introverted, I would think, 'Should I call that person and see if they want to have dinner, or will I just stay in my little room and not venture out?' "

"Obviously, when you become part of a family and there's people to miss if they're not with you, that's not good. I've had many, many a night when I've been like, 'What am I doing? I want to be with my family, why am I not with them?' "