Nicole Kidman conceded on Wednesday that Hollywood has probably contributed to violence against women by portraying them as weak sex objects.

The Academy Award-winning Australian actor says she is not interested in those kinds of demeaning roles, adding that the movie industry has also made an effort to contribute to solutions for ending the violence.

Campaigning for women's rights ... Nicole Kidman.

Kidman told a congressional hearing in Washington, DC, that violence against women and girls was "perhaps the most systematic, widespread human rights violation in the world".

Kidman, a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), testified before a US House Foreign Affairs subcommittee that is considering legislation to deal with violence against women overseas through humanitarian relief efforts and grants to local organisations.