Nicole Kidman chugs milk, Ariana Grande 'loathes' Cynthia Erivo at NBR Awards gala

NEW YORK – Nicole Kidman never gives just 2%.

At Tuesday’s National Board of Review Awards, the “Babygirl” star wholly committed to the bit, recreating a scene from the erotic drama in which her character chugs a glass of milk as part of sexual roleplay.

“Anyone who wants to join me, please – I’m going to raise a glass of milk to all the babygirls in the room,” Kidman said after accepting best actress, earning laughs and emphatic cheers as she downed the beverage on stage. “Good girl!”

It was one of the high points of the glitzy three-hour dinner, as A-listers descended on Cipriani 42^nd Street to sip cocktails and give a final push for their awards hopefuls on the eve of Oscar nomination voting.

Ryan Reynolds helps honor 'Wicked' stars Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande

The big winner of this year’s gala was “Wicked,” which was honored with top prizes for best picture and best director (Jon M. Chu). Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ryan Reynolds were on hand to fete the movie musical, which tells the story of how best friends Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) and Glinda (Ariana Grande) became the witches of Oz.

The film “dares to center on two powerful women,” said Reynolds, stepping out for the first time since wife Blake Lively filed a sexual harassment lawsuit last month against her “It Ends With Us” director/co-star Justin Baldoni. “Stories about women seem to be held to a different set of standards. They're often held to the standards women are held to in life: You must be perfect. You must hide your strength. You must shape-shift or placate.”

He went on to shout-out each cast member individually, telling Grande that she would’ve made the late Gene Wilder proud with her hilarious and heart-wrenching turn as Glinda. The pink-clad pop star was the most sought-after celebrity in the room: holding court with Kidman and “Sing Sing” actor Clarence Maclin, and linking arms with boyfriend and co-star Ethan Slater in a rare public appearance.

Grande also took the stage with Erivo, where they poked fun at their tearful promo tour for “Wicked” as they accepted the NBR Spotlight Award.

“It’s the singular ‘I love you’ text or the random ‘I’m proud of you’ voice note,” Erivo said, as they reflected on their close-knit friendship and creative collaboration.

“It is being so good at acting that no one ever finds out how much we actually loathe each other,” Grande deadpanned.

“It’s true,” Erivo quipped. “We fooled you!”

Daniel Craig, Mikey Madison accept NBR awards before Oscar voting

Throughout the evening, other A-listers endeared the crowd with delightful speeches. Daniel Craig, accepting best actor for the trippy gay romance “Queer,” dedicated his trophy to co-star Drew Starkey: “If I was going to the jungle to take a bucket full of drugs, I would surely do it with you.”

Kieran Culkin, who won best supporting actor for “A Real Pain,” went characteristically off script. Amid expletive-filled praise for collaborator Jesse Eisenberg, the “Succession” star exhaustively recounted his odyssey tipping a bathroom attendant for chewing gum earlier that evening.

Thanks to a combination of whiskey and coffee, “I’ve had the worst breath,” Culkin confessed. “I became very self-aware of it as I was talking to Ariana and singing her praises for ‘Wicked.’ … Anyways, that’s the only thing I prepared to say before I talked about gum and peeing.”

Best supporting actress winner Elle Fanning (“A Complete Unknown”) charmed the audience as she recalled being a Bob Dylan superfan and sweetly thanked her mom and boyfriend, Rolling Stone CEO Gus Wenner, both of whom were in attendance: “I’ve never really had a chance to do that before (on stage).”

And “Anora” star Mikey Madison had the line of the night as she accepted a breakthrough performance from John Lithgow for her screwball stripper dramedy: “I never thought John Lithgow would be calling me sexually athletic. Thank you for your incredibly kind and thoughtful words.”

Full list of National Board of Review winners:

Best film: “Wicked”

Best director: Jon M. Chu (“Wicked”)

Best actor: Daniel Craig (“Queer”)

Best actress: Nicole Kidman (“Babygirl”)

Best supporting actor: Kieran Culkin (“A Real Pain”)

Best supporting actress: Elle Fanning (“A Complete Unknown”)

Best original screenplay: “Hard Truths”

Best adapted screenplay: “Sing Sing”

Breakthrough performance: Mikey Madison (“Anora”)

Best directorial debut: India Donaldson (“Good One”)

Best animated feature: “Flow”

Best international film: “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”

Best documentary: “Sugarcane”

Best ensemble: “Conclave”

NBR Freedom of Expression: “No Other Land”

NBR Spotlight Award: Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande (“Wicked”)

Outstanding achievement in stunt artistry: “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga”

Outstanding achievement in cinematography: “Nosferatu”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ariana Grande, Nicole Kidman shine at National Board of Review Awards