Reese Witherspoon

Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon (born March 22, 1976) is an American actress, producer, and entrepreneur. The recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award, she is among the highest-paid actresses in the world, as of 2019. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2006 and 2015. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and raised in Nashville, Tennessee, Witherspoon began her career as a teenager, making her screen debut in The Man in the Moon (1991). Following a leading role opposite Mark Wahlberg in Fear (1996), her breakthrough came in 1999 with a supporting role in Cruel Intentions and for her portrayal of Tracy Flick in the black comedy Election. She achieved wider recognition with her role as Elle Woods in the comedy Legally Blonde (2001) and its 2003 sequel, and for her starring role in the romantic comedy Sweet Home Alabama (2002). In 2005, her portrayal of June Carter Cash in the biographical musical film Walk the Line garnered critical acclaim and won her the Academy Award for Best Actress. Following a career downturn, during which her sole commercial success was the romantic drama Water for Elephants (2011), Witherspoon made her career comeback when she produced the thriller Gone Girl and the drama Wild (both 2014), under her production company Hello Sunshine. She also starred as Cheryl Strayed in the latter, for which she received a second nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. From 2017 to 2019, she produced and starred in the HBO drama series Big Little Lies, for which she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series. Witherspoon also owns a clothing company Draper James, and she is actively involved in children's and women's advocacy organizations. She serves on the board of the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) and was named Global Ambassador of Avon Products in 2007, serving as honorary chair of the charitable Avon Foundation. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010.