Picture-perfect West Michigan is the setting of new Nicole Kidman thriller

Titled ‘Holland,’ the film will be available to stream on Amazon Prime next month

By Lee DeVito

Feb 25, 2025 at 1:41 pm

Nicole Kidman stars in Holland. Amazon Prime

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West Michigan’s scenic Holland, Michigan — home of the idyllic Tulip Time festival — is the setting of a new thriller starring Nicole Kidman.

Titled Holland, the film is set to premier at next month’s South by Southwest Festival and will be available to stream on Amazon Prime starting on March 27.

According to the official synopsis:

“In this wildly unpredictable thriller, Nicole Kidman is the meticulous Nancy Vandergroot, a teacher and homemaker whose picture-perfect life with her community pillar husband [Succession’s Matthew Macfadyen] and son [Jude Hill] in tulip-filled Holland, Michigan tumbles into a twisted tale. Nancy and her friendly colleague [Gael García Bernal] become suspicious of a secret, only to discover nothing in their lives is what it seems.”

That description and the trailer, which dropped today, seem to suggest something like The Stepford Wives, the 2004 sci-fi black comedy also starring Kidman, or perhaps more recently 2022’s Don’t Worry Darling. Both took place in suburban settings that were not what they appeared to be on the outside. We guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

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The film is the sophomore effort by director Mimi Cave, following her 2022 cannibal horror film Fresh. The film was first announced in 2013 as Holland, Michigan with director Errol Morris attached to the project and Naomi Watts and Bryan Cranston attached to star.

The trailer is below.

Slideshow

25 movies that were made in Michigan

8 Mile (2002) Kudos to Eminem for convincing Hollywood to film this thinly veiled quasi-autobiography about his rise in Detroits hip-hop scene in the place where it all went down. (Filmed on location in the 313 as the ending credits proudly proclaim.) Not only does the movie feature a number of notable Motor City locations (peep the Michigan Buildings ruin porn parking garage and a glimpse inside the long-demolished Chin Tiki), but it also brought colorful local characters like Miz Korona, Proof, and Obie Trice to the big screen. Fun fact: The rap battle scenes at the Shelter were not shot at the real Shelter, but rather a re-created set elsewhere in Detroit. Photo via Universal Pictures

Gran Torino (2008) Written and directed by Clint Eastwood, who also stars in the film, Gran Torino drew praise for its Motor City setting, with The New York Times describing it as a sleek, muscle car of a movie made in the USA, in that industrial graveyard called Detroit. The script was originally set in Minneapolis, but was rewritten to take advantage of Michigans then-new tax incentive program for films. For the most part it works, as Eastwoods Walt Kowalski is a retired auto worker who befriends a Hmong family, and metro Detroit has a sizable population of that Asian culture. One line sticks out as inaccurate though, when Kowalski asks for season tickets for Detroit Lions games. Everyone knows Motor City Kitties games never sell out. Photo via Warner Bros. Pictures

Batman v Superman (2016) The biggest film project ever to be filmed in Michigan, in Batman v Superman Detroit locations serve as the backdrop for the fictitious cities of Batmans gritty Gotham and Supermans sleek Metropolis (as well as Washington D.C. and Mexico for good measure). Some of the notable locations include the Detroit Public Library Main Branch, the Hygrade Deli (rechristened Rallis Diner), the Ransom Gillis House, the Old Wayne County Building, the Russell Industrial Center, and Michigan Central Station, among others. (You can learn more about Batman v Supermans Detroit locations in this Detroit Free Press article.) Photo via Warner Bros. Pictures

Cedar Rapids (2011) Set in titular Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the production was reportedly moved to Ann Arbor only after Iowa failed to cough up a tax incentive. This dark comedy stars Ed Helms as a naive insurance agent who goes to Cedar Rapids for an industry convention; John C. Reily is also in the film. Photo via Fox Searchlight Pictures

Whip It (2009) Drew Barrymores directorial debut stars Ellen Paige as a newbie to the high-impact world of roller derby. Though set in the fictional town of Bodeen, Texas, the movie was filmed in Michigan thanks to those tax incentives, with locations including Detroit, Ypsilanti, Ferndale, Hamtramck, Saline, and Birch Run. Since Detroit has a strong roller derby community, real players were picked from local teams like Detroit Derby Girls and the Grand Raggidy Roller Girls to lend the film authenticity. Photo via Fox Searchlight Pictures

Anatomy of a Murder (1959) Based on the eponymous 1958 novel by Michigan Supreme Court Justice John D. Voelker (written under the pen name Robert Traver), Anatomy of a Murder tells the story of a 1952 Big Bay murder case in which Voelker served as the defense attorney. The movie was shot in and around Michigans Upper Peninsula, including Big Bay, Marquette, Ishpeming, and Michigamme. The attention to authenticity paid off: Law professor Michael Asimow called it probably the finest pure trial movie ever made. The James Stewart-starring movie had its world premiere on July 1, 1959, at the United Artists Theater in Detroit. Photo via Columbia Pictures

Scream 4 (2011) Though set in the fictional Woodsboro, Calif., the fourth and final installment of the horror franchise was filmed primarily in and around Ann Arbor. Scenes set at the Woodsboro High School featured in the original Scream were shot at Dearborns Woodworth Middle School in Dearborn, and Livonias former 16th District Court serves as a police station. Northvilles Next Chapter Bookstore Bistro also makes an appearance in the film, and even provided food for a scene. Photo via Dimension Films

Click to View 25 slides

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Movies Television Things to Do Nicole Kidman Holland West Michigan movies set in Michigan

About The Author

Lee DeVito

Leyland “Lee” DeVito is the editor in chief of Detroit Metro Times since 2016. His writing has also been published in CREEM, VICE, In These Times, and New City. He once asked porn star Stormy Daniels to spank him with an issue of Metro Times. She obliged.

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