Nicole Kidman Finally Explains Her Weird Oscars Clapping

Nicole Kidman’s peculiar clapping style at the Oscars was not the most shocking moment of the night, but it was certainly one of the more confusing things we saw on the broadcast.

As it turns out, there’s a pretty fair explanation for the palms-only clap that sparked a Twitter uproar (and no, it’s not because Kidman never learned how).

Kidman revealed she clapped awkwardly out of fear she’d otherwise damage the “huge ring” she was wearing, according to a radio interview with Australian radio show Kyle & Jackie O. The ring was part of her 119-carat loan of jewelry from Harry Winston for the evening.

“It was really awkward and I was like ‘Gosh, I want to clap, I don’t want to not be clapping, which would be worse, right?’” she said. “It was really difficult because I had a huge ring on that was not my own but was absolutely gorgeous and I was terrified of damaging it.”

We can’t even fathom holding an almost 14-carat diamond ring, let alone having to keep it safe for an entire evening. Kudos to Kidman for making any movement at all, let alone some reckless activity like clapping.

While the ring never felt the glory of a good old Hollywood clap session, it looks like it did get to enjoy some time nestling Keith Urban’s face.