Nicole Kidman Quickly Replaced After Leaving ‘The Reader’ To Attend To Baby-Makin’ Duties

With yesterday’s news that Nicole Kidman is pregnant with husband Keith Urban’s baby (his little Cowboy-hatted fish can swim!), the one irrefutable bit of evidence that Kidman’s privacy-guarding flacks used to dispel the circulating rumors (”She can’t possibly be having a baby! She’s far too busy filming a movie that would render any such dramatic physical fluctuations a major inconvenience!”) has now revealed itself to be utterly obsolete. Not only has Kidman left production on The Reader, but People is now reporting that she’s been replaced by another A-lister:

Kate Winslet is stepping in to take over the role vacated by Nicole Kidman in The Reader, PEOPLE has exclusively learned.

Sources confirm that, in fact, Winslet was originally offered the role but couldn’t commit due to schedule conflicts. Kidman pulled out of the film after announcing her pregnancy.

The arrangement is one of those rare last-minute casting changes that benefits all parties involved, with Kidman given time to focus on her exciting pregnancy, Winslet a meaty part in a sweeping World War II epic, and the filmmakers the chance to work with one of the most celebrated actresses of her generation, who promises to bring entirely new, unhindered-by-temporary-facial-paralysis layers to the role.

• Kate Winslet Taking Over Nicole Kidman’s Role [People]