Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon (born March 22, 1976) is an American actress who has established herself as one of the highest-paid Hollywood actresses in recent years.


Witherspoon landed her first feature role as the female lead in the movie The Man in the Moon in 1991; later that year she made her television acting debut, in the cable movie Wildflower. In 1996, Witherspoon’s performance in Freeway established her as a rising star and led to roles in three major 1998 movies: Overnight Delivery, Pleasantville, and Twilight. The following year, Witherspoon appeared in the critically acclaimed Election, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. 2001 marked her career’s turning point with the breakout role as Elle Woods in the box office hit Legally Blonde, and in 2002 she starred in Sweet Home Alabama, which became her biggest commercial film success to date. 2003 saw her return as lead actress and executive producer of Legally Blonde 2. In 2005, Witherspoon received worldwide attention and praise for her portrayal of June Carter Cash in Walk the Line, which earned her an Academy Award, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress.

Witherspoon married actor and Cruel Intentions co-star Ryan Phillippe in 1999; they have two children, Ava and Deacon. The couple separated at the end of 2006 and divorced in October 2007. Witherspoon owns a production company named Type A Films. 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 chairman of the charitable Avon Foundation.

Witherspoon met American actor Ryan Phillippe at her 21st birthday party in March 1997, where she introduced herself to him saying “I think you’re my birthday present.” The couple became engaged in December 1998, and were married in Charleston, South Carolina on June 5, 1999, following the release of the box office hit Cruel Intentions. They have two children: a daughter named Ava Elizabeth, born September 9, 1999, and a son Deacon Reese, born October 23, 2003. To be able to look after the children, the couple alternated shooting schedules for their films.

By 2005, in response to news reports of Witherspoon and Phillippe receiving marriage counseling, Witherspoon stated, “We’ve done that in the past, and it’s always struck me as odd that people grabbed onto that story and made it sound so negative.” In December 2005, she said on The Oprah Winfrey Show, “In what capacity is working on yourself or your marriage a bad thing? What marriage isn’t a journey? … Nobody’s perfect … We all have our own set of problems.” That same month, Witherspoon also said in an interview, “I think if anybody rests on the idea that they are perfect or their life is perfect or their relationship is perfect and is so troubled about destroying the facade as opposed to getting to what’s real, that is troublesome.”

In October 2006, Witherspoon and Phillippe announced that they decided to formally separate after seven years of marriage. The following month, Witherspoon filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. In her petition she sought joint legal custody of their two children and sole physical custody, with full visitation rights for Phillippe. The couple had no prenuptial agreement and Phillippe would normally be entitled to half of Witherspoon’s assets by California law. Witherspoon requested that the court grant no spousal support for Phillippe, which he did not contest. On May 15, 2007, Phillippe filed for joint physical custody of the couple’s children, and made no motion to block Witherspoon from seeking support from him. In September 2007, Witherspoon spoke openly about the separation for the first time when she told Elle magazine that it was “a difficult and frightening experience” for her. Witherspoon and Phillippe’s final divorce documents were granted by the Los Angeles Superior Court on October 5, 2007, ending their marriage.

Throughout 2007, there was persistent speculation in the mass media about a romantic relationship between Witherspoon and her Rendition co-star Jake Gyllenhaal. The pair denied the rumors while promoting Rendition in the fall of 2007. However, after the finalization of Witherspoon’s divorce in October 2007, Gyllenhaal and Witherspoon became more open with their relationship.

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