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It was the film that gave the world one of the first glimpses of superstar Nicole Kidman.
The 1983 crime comedy BMX Bandits has since become a cult classic and a must-see for megafans of the Babygirl actress.
BMX Bandits was directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith, known for directing a series of low-budget exploitation films such as Turkey Shoot and The Man From Hong Kong.
It was the director’s tenth feature film and possibly the best known of his extensive filmography.
The film follows BMX-loving teenagers PJ (Angelo D’Angelo) and Goose (James Lugton), who, after meeting their new friend Judy (Nicole), discover a box of walkie-talkies.
The trio soon discover that a gang of criminals, led by the imaginatively nicknamed The Boss (Bryan Marshall), intend to use the walkies in a planned payroll heist.
The 1983 crime comedy BMX Bandits has since become a cult classic and a must-see for Nicole Kidman megafans.
The film follows BMX-loving teenagers PJ (Angelo D’Angelo) and Goose (James Lugton), who, after meeting their new friend Judy (Nicole), discover a box of walkie-talkies.
The Bandidos trio then hatch a plan to foil the planned heist and, spoiler alert, lots of BMX shenanigans ensue.
The film was well received upon its release, and Trenchard-Smith stated in commentary on the film’s Blu-ray release that it grossed over $1 million in its first six weeks and was the fifth highest-grossing film in the United Kingdom. United that year.
So what happened to the main cast of BMX Bandits?
Nicole Kidman
Needless to say, Hollywood megastar Nicole Kidman’s post-BMX Bandits career has been very well documented.
After a stellar career in Australia in films such as the thriller Dead Calm, directed by Phillip Noyce, and the miniseries The Bangkok Hilton and Vietnam, Nicole made her mark in Hollywood.
She rose to international fame in the 1990 film Days of Thunder, where she also met her first husband, Tom Cruise.
Jumping from success to success, Nicole went on to star in other big projects including Far and Away, To Die For, Batman Forever and auteur director Stanley Kubrick’s cinematic swan song, Eyes Wide Shut.
Nicole won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Virginia Woolfe in the 2002 drama The Hours and was nominated for roles in Moulin Rouge!, Rabbit Hole, Lion and Being The Ricardos.
BMX Bandits was Nicole’s second feature film and, according to IMDB, she was chosen for the role from a field of 200 hopefuls.
After a stellar career in Australia in films such as the Phillip Noyce-directed thriller Dead Calm and the miniseries The Bangkok Hilton and Vietnam, Nicole decided to take on the world.
Still at the top of her game, Nicole was last seen in the 2024 erotic thriller Babygirl.
The romance with an age difference has seen her nominated for Best Actress at the 2025 Golden Globes, scheduled for January 5.
In her personal life, Nicole married Mission: Impossible star Tom in a private ceremony in Telluride, Colorado, on Christmas Eve 1990.
They adopted two children, Isabella Jane and Connor Antony, before divorcing in 2001.
She then remarried country superstar Keith Urban in 2006.
The couple is still together and lives in Nashville with their two children, Sunday Rose, 16, and Faith Margaret, 14.
According IMDBNicole learned to ride a bike for her role as the BMX Bandits and was chosen from a field of 200 hopeful young actresses.
Angelo D’Angelo
Angelo played the energetic BMX Bandit PJ opposite Nicole Kidman’s Judy in what was his first big screen role to date.
But he has starred in a number of Australian film and television projects in the years since he rose to fame in BMX Bandits.
On the big screen, Angelo has appeared in films such as the 1980s Australian comedies Emoh Ruo and Coco Cola Kid.
Angelo also appeared in the 1990 comedy The Big Steal, directed by Nadia Tass, alongside Claudia Karvan and Ben Mendelsohn.
Angelo has also been a regular on the small screen, having landed small roles in films such as A Country Practice, Waer Rats, Heartbreak High and Rake.
He recently appeared in the Channel Seven drama series A Place To Call Home.
Angelo played the energetic BMX Bandit PJ opposite Nicole Kidman’s Judy in what was his first big screen role.
The acting bug that bit Angelo stayed with him for life, and the actor has a decades-long career in film and television.
James Lugton
James, as Goose, completed the BMX bandit gang and, like Angelo, the film was also his first big screen role.
Since his auspicious debut, James has carved out a long career as a character actor on the Australian big and small screen.
He has appeared in popular soap operas such as A Country Practice and All Saints and played three different characters – Simon Henderson, Dr Jonathan Fitzsimmons and Greg Moro – in the iconic series Home and Away.
talking to women’s day In 2012, James revealed that he didn’t envy his former co-star Nicole, despite her A-list status.
‘I would love to have fortune! But not that high-intensity degree of fame,’ he said.
‘She is in the spotlight 24/7. “That kind of relentless attention is not for me.”
James, as Goose, completed the BMX bandit gang and, like Angelo, the film was also his big screen debut.
Since his auspicious debut, James has forged a long career as a character actor on the Australian big and small screen.
Over the years, James has praised his co-star Nicole and admitted that they had a great time working together on set.
James also praised his co-star and admitted that they had a great time working together on set.
“Nicole was fantastic to work with,” James said. ‘She was 15 and I was 16 when we did Bandits.
“We played a lot between takes; she was very sweet and had a great sense of fun.”
David Argue
One of Australia’s most recognized character actors, David played hapless criminal Whitey in BMX Bandits.
Along with Mustache and The Boss, Whitey launches a plot to get $1.5 million in a payroll heist, kicking off the action in the Australian blockbuster.
David came to production with a number of film and television credits under his belt.
She made her screen debut in 1977 as Sunny Martin in the Australian soap opera The Restless Years.
One of Australia’s best-known character actors, David played hapless criminal Whitey (r), who, along with Mustache and The Boss, plans to make off with $1.5 million in a payroll heist.
After his stint as the antagonist Nicole, David has had many roles on the big screen, including in 1985’s The Coca Cola Kid and the 1993 Hercules Returns spoof.
He also had a career-defining role in the classic Australian World War I film Gallipoli, playing the laconic Snowy alongside stars Mel Gibson and Mark Lee.
After his stint as the antagonist Nicole, David has boasted many big screen roles, including in 1985’s The Coca Cola Kid and 1993’s Hercules Returns spoof.
Angela Bishop
She may be best known as an entertainment reporter and presenter on Channel Ten’s Studio 10, but Angela Bishop also had a role in BMX Bandits.
While interviewing Nicole in 2021, Angela reminded her former co-star of her “crucial” role in the film.
“I was the third extra from the left at Waterworks,” Angela revealed, while showing a scene from the film.
In it you could see a very young Angela in the background, who is also the daughter of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Bronwyn Bishop.
She may be best known as an entertainment reporter and presenter on Channel Ten’s Studio 10, but Angela Bishop also had a role in BMX Bandits.
While interviewing Nicole in 2021, Angela reminded her former co-star of her “crucial” role in the film in a humorous exchange.
“It’s still very important,” Nicole joked about her role. “It wouldn’t have worked without you.”
It wasn’t Angela’s only film role, either, as the host also landed a role as an uncredited spectator in Kennedy-Miller’s 1984 miniseries Bodyline.
She also played a Channel Ten reporter in the 2011 comedy A Few Best Men and appeared in four episodes of the legendary American soap opera The Bold And The Beautiful.
Most notably, however, she has carved out a highly successful career as a television presenter and is now best known as Network 10’s entertainment editor.