Reese Witherspoon has introduced the young actor who will be taking on her iconic character of Elle Woods in the forthcoming Legally Blonde prequel series, Elle.
Witherspoon, 48, who originated the role of the peppy law student and future lawyer in the 2001 rom-com and its 2003 sequel, made the announcement in a collaborative Instagram post shared Thursday.
“Allow me to introduce you to the new Elle Woods! After watching so many incredible auditions for the new Elle prequel series on @PrimeVideo, we finally found our Elle. And today, I got to break the news myself! Meet @leximinetree,” she wrote in the caption of the video.
In the video, the Oscar-winning actor paces around a hotel room, squealing: “I’m so excited. Oh my god!” before settling down to welcome budding actor Lexi Minetree into the room.
The two share a hug, after which Witherspoon brings Minetree over to a couch to break the news.
“Your audition tape was amazing, as we talked about,” the Big Little Lies star prefaces. “And we had to make a really hard decision, and we wanted to tell you in person because you’ve just worked really hard. We just wanted to tell you that you don’t have to audition anymore because you got the part. You’re Elle Woods.”
Minetree instantly bursts into tears. “Wait. Really?” she says in disbelief, with Witherspoon responding: “Yeah, you’re Elle Woods.”
Asking if she can again hug Witherspoon, the two share another tight embrace. “I haven’t slept in three nights,” the Morning Show actor admits. “I wanted to tell you sooner.”
Minetree — who’s so far appeared in a single 2024 episode of Law & Order: SVU and the 2023 crime-thriller Murdaugh Murders: The Movie — then says she wants to call her mom to tell her the casting update.
After a couple of rings, Minetree’s mom picks up. Witherspoon takes the phone to tell her: “Hey, Anne. Lexi just handed me the phone. This is Reese Witherspoon.”
“You’re joking,” Minetree’s mom replies, as Witherspoon reassures: “No, I’m not kidding. Wanted to tell you some really good news. But actually, I would prefer to have Lexi tell you. It’s her news to tell you.”
“I’m Elle Woods!” Minetree shrieks in excitement. Her mom congratulates her before noting: “Y’all sound exactly alike.”
“Isn’t it crazy?” Witherspoon agrees. “When I saw her tape, I was like, ‘Are we the same person? This is so weird.’”
The casting reveal comes months after Witherspoon announced in September 2024 that they were officially holding open auditions for the series lead.
Titled Elle, the Prime Video series will follow the titular character through her teenage years, delving into the experiences that shaped her into the ambitious young woman viewers know from the original film.
