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Reese Witherspoon: ‘So Often I’m The Only Woman In A Room Full Of Men’

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 05:24 PST, Mar 10, 2017

Reese Witherspoon has opened up about being the only woman in a room full of men, according to the Daily Mail. As it turns out, the Big Little Lies actress chose to produce and star in a female-driven show for a reason.

Reese Witherspoon says she’s done being the only woman on a set full of men and wants to bring more woman power into the male-dominated movie industry.

Empowering women in the movie industry was the reason Reese Witherspoon chose to be the producer of HBO’s Big Little Lies, which aired its pilot episode late last month and has been lauded by critics so far.

Speaking to People magazine, Reese Witherspoon revealed that working alongside such influential woman as Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley, and Zoe Kravitz on the set of Big Little Lies has taught her a lot.

Putting females into the spotlight of the film industry was also the reason that Reese Witherspoon started her own production company, Pacific Standard, which is producing the female-driven seven-episode HBO show.

On Big Little Lies, Reese Witherspoon portrays Madeline, a mother who is going through a divorce. Just like her character on the black comedy drama, Witherspoon went through a divorce and legal battle when she divorced her former husband, Ryan Phillippe, in 2007.

Reese Witherspoon gushed about working in the star-studded cast, and she described the cast as a “really interesting group of women whose work I’d always loved.” The actress admitted that waking up every day to work with Kidman, Dern, and others was “a pleasure.”

On Big Little Lies, which is based on the novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty, each actress has a distinct role. Kidman’s character, Celeste, is dealing with domestic violence, while Woodley’s character, Jane, is a working-class single mother.

As if the three mothers didn’t have enough problems in their lives, they also end up being drawn into a murder mystery. Reese Witherspoon admits that she could relate to the mothers’ struggles while reading the novel for the first time.

Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter last month, Reese Witherspoon explained that she saw herself at different stages of motherhood while reading the novel. This was the reason that the actress felt the urge to adapt the novel into a TV show.

“It explores so many aspects that are relatable to the lives of women; it wasn’t about them being good or bad — they showed every spectrum and every color of women’s lives.”

Reese Witherspoon is no stranger to trying to fight back against the male-dominated film industry. The actress has previously opened up that she has often been “the only woman on set” in her 25-year career.

Reese Witherspoon described the phenomenon when a woman finds herself surrounded by only men in her workplace as Smurfette syndrome.

If Reese Witherspoon was ever surrounded by only women, then it was clearly on her trip in New Zealand, according to Stuff. The actress joined Oprah Winfrey and Mindy Kaling to fly a helicopter over New Zealand’s Lake Hawea.

Exploring the beautiful scenery, Reese Witherspoon and her two celebrity pals shared their helicopter ride on social media. The actresses were spending time in New Zealand while shooting the Disney film A Wrinkle in Time.

But shooting for the film and enjoying the breathtaking helicopter flight weren’t the only things that kept Reese Witherspoon busy in New Zealand. The actress apparently found a new boyfriend in the country, proven by her Instagram snap showing herself and a handsome horse. The actress wrote in the caption, “my new bf.”

[Featured Image by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images]

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reese witherspoon zoe kravitz laura dern shailene woodley Nicole Kidman Big Little Lies
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