Legally Blonde Cast Then And Now, On The Film's 20th Anniversary

Her Legally Blonde angle:

Elle Woods is the pink-loving, animal obsessed, sorority sister who applies to Harvard law school to show her pompous ex-boyfriend Warner that she is smarter and more ambitious than he gives her credit for. She ends up solving a murder case and delivers the Valedictorian speech on graduation.

What's she been doing since?

What hasn't Reese Witherspoon been doing? After Legally Blonde, she starred in rom coms like Sweet Home Alabama before portraying June Cash opposite Joaquin Phoenix in Walk the Line for which she won an Oscar in 2005.

As well as continuing acting, Witherspoon set up her own production company Hello Sunshine which specialises in producing books-to-TV films and television with complex, female characters at the forefront like Gone Girl, Big Little Lies, Little Fires Everywhere and soon, Where The Crawdads Sing.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

Warner's hostile new girlfriend and fiancé at Harvard Law who soon realises the pitfalls of dating Warner and becomes friends with Elle, despite their acrimonious origins.

What's she been doing since?

Blair is famous for her roles in The Sweetest Thing, the Hellboy franchises, Anger Management, and in 2016 she portrayed Kris Jenner in Ryan Murphy's American Crime Story series, The People vs OJ Simpson.

More recently, Blair has open about her Multiple Sclerosis (MS) diagnosis and has sought to raise awareness of the condition, including walking with a walking cane at the Oscars after party in 2018.

His Legally Blonde angle:

Professor Callaghan's junior partner who notices Elle's potential and becomes a mentor to her while working on the murder case. They later fall in love and in Legally Blonde 2 plan their wedding at Fenway Park.

What's he been doing since?

Known for comedies, much like his brother Owen, Wilson has appeared in Anchorman, Stuck On You and The Royal Tenenbaums. TV wise, he's been seen in That '70s Show, and more recently has appeared in films The Goldfinch and All The Bright Places.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

Accused of murdering her husband, Brooke and Elle develop a trust and Elle learns she is innocent because Brooke was having liposuction but does not want this to be disclosed in court. Elle keeps her secret and tries to crack the case another way.

What's she been doing since?

Horror films like the Final Destination series! She also had a lead role in the supernatural series Heroes from 2006 to 2010 and is now seen on the TV show The Rookie.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

One half of Elle's best friends and sorority sisters from college who are much more in tune with Elle's west coast pink way of life than her new Harvard classmates.

What's she been doing since?

Known equally for comedies (Road Trip and White Chicks) and horror (Valentine). In 2019, she joined White Chicks co-star Busy Phillips on her show Busy Does It to recreate their nightclub dance scene from the film.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

The Harvard law teacher who initially doubts Elle and her pink fluffy pen while teaching her.

She later says she is 'very honoured' to introduce Elle as speaker at graduation, saying 'I am sure we are going to see great things from her'.

What's she been doing since?

Continuing to be a legend, essentially. She portrayed Jon Cryer and Charlie Sheen's mother on Two and a Half Men for 12 years and starred in The L Word for five years.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

The other half of Elle's best friends duo, who is a devoted cheerleader at college.

What's she been doing since?

Starring in Euphoria alongside Zendaya and also voicing parts for several animated films. She is the voice of Mamá Imelda in Coco, Cutter in the Monsters At Work series (the Disney Plus spin-off of Monsters Inc) and Pound Puppies.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

Paulette the nail technician is the first (and, for a while, only) friend Elle makes in Boston. Their friendship becomes strong as Paulette serves words of encouragement and takes part in bend and snap routines with Elle, while the Harvard law student helps the nail artist get her dog back from her ex-husband and begin to strike up conversation with the UPS guy she has her eye on.

What's she been doing since?

Garnering a cult-like following for her many iconic roles like 'Stifler's Mom' in American Pie series, Amanda in the final season of Friends, the evil stepmother to Hillary Duff's character in A Cinderella Story and Sophie Kachinsky in 2 Broke Girls.

His Legally Blonde angle:

The arrogant college boyfriend of Elle who dumps her at a restaurant where she thinks he is going to propose to her. His reasons for the break-up? He needs a 'Jackie not a Marilyn'.

He later tries to win Elle back after she cracks the murder trial but she sees through him and he graduates with no girlfriend and no job offers.

What's he been doing since?

Leading the series of What About Brian (2006-2007), starring in cult show The Vampire Diaries as Alaric Saltzman and its spin-off series Legacies and has a recurring role on CSI.

Her Legally Blonde angle:

The daughter of the murdered millionaire (and stepdaughter of the accused, Brooke) who - thanks to Elle's understand of perm haircare - is later found to be guilty of her own father's murder.

What's she been doing since?

Playing the iconic cartoon character of Velma in the live-action Scooby Doo movies, roles in critically-acclaimed TV shows and movies like ER, Mad Men, Brokeback Mountain, Avengers and Green Book.

Most recently, she's won huge acclaim for playing Judy Hale opposite Christina Applegate in Netflix's Dead To Me.