How Reese Witherspoon Creates Her Iconic Characters

One of Hollywood’s most prolific figures working today, Reese Witherspoon has created unforgettable female characters onscreen—and offscreen, with her award-winning media company Hello Sunshine. From Tracy Flick to Elle Woods to Madeline Martha Mackenzie, few actors have as many household names in their body of work as Reese does. How does she approach such roles? “It’s almost like being an anthropologist,” she tells Backstage. “You are studying contemporary behavior and how people interact and then applying it to character.” And her advice for fellow artists is evergreen: “You’re never gonna lose anything by trying. So dare greatly.” An Emmy, Screen Actors Guild, BAFTA, and Academy Award winner, Reese began appearing in commercials at a young age in Tennessee, taking odd jobs in film production before dropping out of school to pursue acting. She broke out in “The Man in the Moon,” “Cruel Intentions,” and “Election” before starring in the “Legally Blonde” films, “Walk the Line” as June Carter Cash, “Wi