Reese Witherspoon: Recent News

May 15, 2013

Reese Witherspoon & Jim Toth Have 'Great Chemistry' While Shopping in N.Y.C.

May 06, 2013

Reese Witherspoon & Miranda Lambert Sport Two Very Different Hats & More From the Weekend

May 05, 2013

Reese Witherspoon Sports Atlanta Police Department Hat Following Arrest

May 04, 2013

Reese Witherspoon Shows Rare Glimpse of Real Self

See All Reese Witherspoon News

Reese Witherspoon: Photos

May 23, 2013

THIS BUD'S FOR YOU Everything's coming up tulips for Reese Witherspoon as she makes a grocery run Wednesday in Westwood,…

See Photo

Reese Witherspoon: Snapshot

Name: Reese Witherspoon
Date of Birth: March 22, 1976
Birth Place: New Orleans, La.

With a knack for playing unflappable charmers who don't take no for an answer, Reese Witherspoon zoomed from critics' darling to A-list star with the box-office success of the collegiate comedy Legally Blonde.

Her bubbly Blonde role as Elle Woods spawned a sequel that earned the petite powerhouse a $15 million paycheck! But it was her portrayal of June Carter Cash in Walk the Line that nabbed her a Best Actress Oscar just days before her 30th birthday.

That year of triumph ended in sadness when her seven-year marriage to Cruel Intentions costar Ryan Phillippe (with whom she has two children) fell apart. But Witherspoon picked up the pieces, dating Rendition costar Jake Gyllenhaal, for two years, before giving marriage a second chance with Hollywood agent Jim Toth. The couple welcomed son Tennessee James in Sept. 2012, but faced legal woes shortly after, when both were arrested and jailed for suspicion of driving under the influence and disorderly conduct.

People Hot List - Which Stars Have the Most Buzz?

The Hot List shows the most buzzed about celebs of the moment as measured by reader activity on People.com

See All 25 Hot Listers

Reese Witherspoon: Video

* Non Franchise

From sweet southern belle to red carpet stunner, see how the mom of two stepped up her style to be one of Hollywood's best dressed

(02:25)

Reese Witherspoon: Five Fun Facts

Reese Witherspoon has a French bulldog named Coco Chanel, who she likes to put pearls on.
Reese Witherspoon is a descendant of John Witherspoon, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Reese Witherspoon joked to Elle magazine: "Why do Southern women make bad prostitutes? Cuz we have to write so many thank-you notes!"
Reese Witherspoon is "obsessed with Tupperware," she told PEOPLE, and can't walk by a Container Store without stopping.
Reese Witherspoon named her production company, Type A Films, after her childhood nickname. Type A's first project was 2008's romantic fable Penelope, starring Christina Ricci as a pig-faced girl looking for true love.

Reese Witherspoon: Biography

1983: A Budding Career
Witherspoon breaks into modeling and lands an acting gig at age 7, shooting a TV commercial for a florist. She continues doing local commercials and takes first place in a Ten-State Talent Fair at age 11.
1990: September
Girl Empowerment
The Nashville debutante develops her confidence while attending an all-girls high school. "I really believe in single-sex education," she tells PEOPLE in 2002. "There are no inhibitions. You can walk to school with your zit cream on and your hair in rollers and nobody cares."
1991: October 04
A Tender Debut
At 14, Witherspoon debuts in the coming-of-age drama The Man in the Moon, giving her first onscreen kiss to costar Jason London. She makes her television premiere the same year in the Diane Keaton-directed drama Wildflower.