Reese Witherspoon has officially passed the torch Legally blonde, and did it in the most appropriate way imaginable, lending the original pink dress she wore at the 2001 film premiere to the actress who will bring Elle Woods forward.
Lexi Minetree, 25, will play a teenage Elle Woods in Elle, Amazon Prime’s prequel series launching July 1, which follows the future Harvard Law star during her high school years in the mid-’90s.
To mark the handover, Minetree borrowed Witherspoon’s original Marc Jacobs dress from the film’s premiere 25 years ago and wore it this week on Jimmy Kimmel’s chat show, a symbolic gesture that clearly delighted the woman who made the role iconic.
Witherspoon, 50, gushed over her successor at a 25th anniversary celebration Legally blonde franchise.
“I just couldn’t be more proud to pass the baton or the torch to Lexi Minetree as the new Elle Woods,” she said.
“I love you so much. You have no idea. I’m so proud of you.” She also revealed that Minetree’s audition tape took her breath away.
The celebration featured several original cast members, with Selma Blair, Jennifer Coolidge and Ali Larter joining Witherspoon at a special Elle World pop-up event in New York City on Saturday evening.
Witherspoon, who is producing the prequel, spoke about what the franchise has always meant to her and what she hopes it will mean to a new generation.
“Twenty-five years after the world first met Elle Woods, it’s a dream come true to share the story of how she became the unstoppable force we all fell in love with,” she said.
“I think our series’ themes of kindness, authenticity and self-confidence will resonate deeply with fans of the original films and new audiences alike.”
First season of She is set in 1995, finding a younger version of the character uprooted from the glamor of Los Angeles to Seattle, where she navigates awkward friendships, forbidden romance, and questionable fashion choices along the way.
The show has already been given the green light for a second series before the first has even aired.
