Moments That Make Us: Reese Witherspoon Sees Women as the Heroes of Their Own Stories

Moments That Make Us: Reese Witherspoon Sees Women as the Heroes of Their Own Stories

To celebrate turning 60, Melinda French Gates sat down with iconic changemakers of all ages to talk about their biggest life transitions for a special series, “Moments That Make Us.” In this episode, she chats with actress and producer Reese Witherspoon about her passion for sharing women’s stories, what it’s like being a working mom in Hollywood, the one question she asks before deciding whether to recommend a book, and how she feels when someone doubts her.

Check out all of the conversations in this series:
Megan Rapinoe: https://youtu.be/Qf6hTRBopfM
Reese Witherspoon: https://youtu.be/pLpxTpV6HDE
Ava DuVernay: https://youtu.be/KOSKMSrio0o
Michelle Obama: https://youtu.be/IDWfRpIitc0
Oprah Winfrey & Gayle King: https://youtu.be/XBKa7PDnoVA
Billie Jean King: https://youtu.be/lbe6KAU3UKw
& don’t miss the Trailer! : https://youtu.be/R2-29EuHaWI

In this episode:
• 0:40 – Reflecting on Reese’s 40s and making peace with change and uncertainty
• 1:19 – How Reese’s mother’s career as a pediatric nurse shaped her idea of working as a mother from a young age and her experience as a mom in Hollywood
• 4:13 – Advocating for women’s representation in film to every film studio in Hollywood
• 6:09 – Why books are meaningful to Reese and becoming a continuous learner
• 7:05 – Starting a business without a business background, thinking beyond constraints, and raising money for Hello Sunshine
o See more: https://hello-sunshine.com/
• 8:42 – Reese’s decision to take the role as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde after watching an interview of Gloria Steinem on Goldie Hawn’s role in Private Benjamin
o See more: https://youtu.be/vWOHwI_FgAo
o See more: https://www.glamour.com/story/reese-witherspoon
• 11:17 – Pushing back on the constant messages of perfectionism from society
• 13:07 – Finding deep connections and Charlie Munger’s ‘Web of Deserved Trust’
o See more: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/30/melinda-french-gates-the-best-lesson-i-got-from-charlie-munger.html
• 13:53 – The formative experience of an all-girls school and Melinda’s own experience with her teachers at an all-girls school
o See more: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7162535433267064832/
• 16:00 – The joyful experience of raising kids
• 17:22 – Starting Reese’s Book Club and the criteria for picking books to share with others
o See more: https://reesesbookclub.com/
• 18:58 – Telling strong female stories and the importance of asking others their story

Produced by Feee Films
Directed by Felicia Manning
Photography c/o Pivotal Ventures

Follow Melinda French Gates on:
Twitter/X: @melindagates
Facebook: @melindagates
LinkedIn: @melindagates
Instagram: @melindafrenchgates
YouTube: @melindafrenchgates

Follow Reese Witherspoon on:
Twitter/X: @ReeseW
Facebook: @ReeseWitherspoon
Instagram: @ReeseWitherspoon
TikTok: @ReeseWitherspoon
YouTube: @ReeseWitherspoon