Reese Witherspoon has never forgotten Elle Woods, and much of that is thanks to fans who never let her forget how iconic the character still is. The actor defined a generation with her positive demeanor and classic pink style. Elle also owned the courtroom with bubbly authenticity. After 25 years, the actor was finally ready to pass “the pink torch” to a new actress, Lexi Minetree, in a prequel comedy series that takes place long before Harvard.
The new series can be watched with an Amazon Prime subscription. Elle only has eight episodes, which makes for a quick and easy binge. Witherspoon stopped by The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to dish about the new series and revealed the unexpected place she gets classic Legally Blonde one-liners thrown at her all the time:
Probably like twice a week, somebody comes up to me and says, ‘That’s my favorite movie,’ ‘I went to law school because of you,’ or you know, I go to Starbucks and I order a coffee, they’re like, ‘What, like it’s hard?’
One thing I always loved about the movie is how easily quotable it is. Some phrases are almost more iconic than her classic pink style. But fans weren’t the only ones excited for Elle’s comeback. Witherspoon was so hyped for the upcoming prequel that she celebrated by bringing back the bend and snap. However, despite the fan anticipation for the series, critics had objections to certain “teen drama cliches” they felt were in the series, such as a certain love triangle.
On the other hand, I learned a long time ago that what the critics think is hardly ever what the fans think. Despite critics objecting, the prequel series was number one on Amazon. This resulted in a sweet thank you from Reese Witherspoon to every fan who took the time to watch Elle. While she was at the Tonight Show, the actor spilled the tea on why now was the right time for her to bring the “iconic character” back:
I just thought why not stop and make her a character for young women nowadays? I just I looked at – you know – what’s going on with young girls, and I just think they need a better role model so it was time to bring Elle Woods back!
Growing up with the film, I always loved how Elle was this role model. She never let anyone define who she was. She was a sweet, independent, and positive woman who was a bit outside the norm at Harvard Law, but she never apologized for being herself. To me, this makes her a classic “feminist” character who serves as a reminder for young women to never forget to pursue their own dreams.
The “fish out of water” story is one that defined Legally Blonde, as she went from the sorority house to Harvard. The prequel Elle takes the same path, by symbolically taking young Elle from the sunny climate of Bel-Air to the rainy city of Seattle. And not just because of the obvious fashion differences.
The prequel had fun reinventing the character, though it never forgets where Elle is going to end up. For those of us who lived on Legally Blonde, the streaming series gives little winks, such as when it dropped a hilarious reveal about the character. Hint: it may have to do with her astrological sign.
I can’t wait to see if any of Elle’s one-liners will be quoted to Witherspoon at Starbucks.