“As if” you can find an actress as entertaining and whose career hasn’t slowed down over the last thirty years. The person we are talking about is the iconic Reese Witherspoon, of course. Born Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon on March 22, 1976, in New Orleans, Louisiana, Reese began her career as a teenager.
![The 'Fear' Film Premiere In Sydney](https://wjbr.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2024/03/GettyImages-51084458.jpg)
(Photo by Patrick Riviere/Getty Images).
In 1991, 15-year-old Reese Witherspoon attended an open casting call for The Man in the Moon, intending to audition for a role with no more than five lines of dialogue. Instead, she was cast for the lead role of Dani Trant, a country girl who falls in love for the first time with her 17-year-old neighbor. For her debut film performance in the film, Witherspoon was nominated for a Young Artist Award. Later that year, she made her television debut in Wildflower with Patricia Arquette.
Reese’s breakthrough came in 1999 with a supporting role in Cruel Intentions. In a 2018 appearance on Watch What Happens Live, the mother of three was asked if she would let her children watch the dark comedy film. Wanting to initially take them to a play of the movie, she changed her mind. Then, when it came to showing them the movie, she said she didn’t have “any interest” in them seeing her in a “weird” setting with their father, the film’s star, Ryan Philippe.
Reese’s Career Highlights
She gained wider recognition for playing Elle Woods in 2001’s Legally Blonde (2001) and its 2003 sequel. For 2005’s Johnny Cash musical biopic Walk the Line, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for portraying June Carter Cash. A few companies approached Reese to record music after she provided her own singing voice for the film.
Following a career downturn in the next few years, her sole box-office success was the romantic drama Water for Elephants (2011). Witherspoon made a comeback by producing and starring as Cheryl Strayed in the drama Wild (2014), which earned her a second nomination for Best Actress at the Oscars.
RELATED: Reese Witherspoon Shares Rare Set Photos From ‘Legally Blonde’
The actress and producer is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Golden Globe Awards. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2006 and 2015.
Meanwhile, Forbes listed her among the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women in 2019 and 2021. In 2021, Reese was dubbed the world’s highest-earning actress by the publication. Two years later, Reese Witherspoon was named one of the richest women in America, with an estimated net worth of $440 million.
Take a look below at our top 6 favorite Reese Witherspoon roles of all time: