At 5-Years-Old, Reese Witherspoon Told Her Teacher She Was Going To Be The Next Dolly Parton

Reese Witherspoon, born Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon in Louisiana on March 22, 1976, had high aspirations even as a small child. As a young high school student, Witherspoon dreamed of growing up and becoming just like her favorite role model: Dolly Parton.

When she was five-years-old, her physical education teacher complained that little Reese wasn’t mixing with the other children, and the teacher wasn’t aware that five-year-old Reese was simply daydreaming of becoming the next Dolly Parton. According to Entertainment Tonight, Reese Witherspoon spoke about what happened when she revealed her big dream to her teacher.

“My P.E. teacher said, ‘Why aren’t you playing the game [with the other kids]?’ I said, ‘Well, I’m not going to play the game because, Ms. Wright, I’m going to be Dolly Parton when I grow up.'”

Witherspoon’s admiration for Dolly Parton may have appeared to be a childlike dream at the time, but the little girl had already set her goal in motion. She never wavered from her dream and made her film debut in 1991 when she featured in The Man in the Moon.

Reese Witherspoon brought a new phrase into the light recently, when she discussed the “Smurfette Syndrome” at a promotional event for her upcoming movie Big Little Lies, according to Variety.

According to the actress, many films have only one woman on-set, in a similar way to how the Smurfs has only one female character.

“For 25 years, I’ve been the only woman on set so I had no one to talk to.”

In order to change this phenomenon, Witherspoon has teamed with Nicole Kidman and optioned the rights to the 2014 novel Big Little Lies, written by Liane Moriarty. The film will showcase diverse women in various stages of motherhood, and that is something the Sweet Home Alabama actress is very excited about.

“They [costars Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz, and Laura Dern] showed every spectrum and color of a woman’s life. I thought it was incredible to have so many parts for women in one piece of material.”

The popular actress has worked very hard to develop her career and, as a result, has had 25 years of great success in Hollywood. In 2006, Reese Witherspoon’s talent, dedication, and efforts were recognized when she won the Academy Award in the Best Actress category for her role in Walk the Line. Witherspoon credits her mother, Mary Elizabeth, with instilling in her the values of hard work. According to Time magazine, the actress commented that she hoped her children would be motivated by watching her, just as she was inspired by her hard-working mother.

“My mom worked, and I think it’s good for kids to see women working and being successful. I think it’s going to make them hard workers because they see that I don’t get much sleep.”

At 40-years-old, Reese Witherspoon feels no pressure about growing older because she’s matured and become wise enough to make the right decisions regarding her career. She’s also become an entrepreneur by setting up Draper James, a company and brand that sells clothing, accessories, and home decoration products. According to People magazine, Witherspoon revealed that being an entrepreneur has opened new career avenues for her to explore.

“It’s a new chapter for me starting a business, going around passing the hat, and promoting it all over the place. It’s a different experience, but I’m enjoying learning something new. I like the challenge of trying something else too.”

Draper James sells Southern-style products, making Witherspoon’s fashion items unique in the fashion world. Most fashion companies design products that are typically based on the prevailing fashion trends in New York and Los Angeles. Witherspoon’s business acumen has enabled her to carve a nice little niche for herself in the market because there are very few companies who’ve created products based on Southern style.

The Sweet Home Alabama actress understands that people have a need to buy fashion accessories and home décor products that allow them to express their individuality, and because the actress believes that southern lifestyle and fashion have been largely neglected, Draper James hopes to fill this void in the market. People magazine reported that Witherspoon appeared on the cover page of InStyle magazine’s December, 2016 issue, with the headline naming her the Queen of Southern Style.

The magazine also carried Reese Witherspoon’s interview which was conducted by Dolly Parton, her role model; the person who inspired the popular actress to go the extra mile while pursuing her passion.

[Featured Image by Jonathan Leibson/Getty Images]