Reese Witherspoon revealed that her childhood dream of becoming a country singer was brutally shut down while attending a performing arts camp.
During an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, the Oscar-winning actress, 49, confirmed she grew up aspiring to have a career like country legends Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Shania Twain.
‘Is it true that you wanted to be a country singer?’ host Kelly Clarkson asked.
Witherspoon confirmed she ‘really did,’ before reminding the audience that she ‘got to be one in a movie once.’
The mother-of-three famously portrayed June Carter Cash in the 2005 biographical film Walk the Line, alongside Joaquin Phoenix, a role that earned her an Academy Award.
Clarkson remarked that it was ‘cool to have that dream when you’re a kid and then like it didn’t maybe happen how you thought, but then it ended up happening in a different way.’
Reese Witherspoon revealed that her childhood dream of becoming a country singer was brutally shut down while attending a performing arts camp
Witherspoon agreed, recalling how eager she was to sing, dance, and act — until her enthusiasm was quickly tempered at an acting camp.
‘They told me to cool it on the singing,’ she remembered, adding that she was placed ‘in the back for every dance performance.’
Fortunately, the camp counselors recognized her natural talent for acting and encouraged her to focus on that instead.
As for how she took that advice at just 13, Witherspoon said she chose to stay optimistic.
‘I was good at something,’ she said, admitting she would have been ‘depressed’ if she had been told she was ‘bad at everything’ after training to be a country singer for two years.
Clarkson then confessed that she had assumed Witherspoon had won a Grammy for her role as June Carter Cash.
‘The soundtrack won the Grammy, but I didn’t win,’ Witherspoon clarified.
Clarkson expressed earnest frustration on her behalf, saying that would have brought her much closer to achieving EGOT status, an elite honor for those who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award.
During an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, the actress, 49, confirmed she grew up aspiring to have a career like country legends Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and Shania Twain
While on the show, Witherspoon recalled how eager she was to sing, dance, and act — until her enthusiasm was quickly tempered at an acting camp as a teen; seen in 1991
‘They told me to cool it on the singing,’ she remembered, adding that she was placed ‘in the back for every dance performance’
Only 21 people have ever achieved the distinction during their lifetimes.
Witherspoon laughed at the idea, revealing that her youngest child, Tennessee, 13, has recently become very invested in her career milestones.
‘My youngest kid is super invested in my career. My other two give two cr**s, but my youngest is like, “Mom, can you get an EGOT?” And I was like, “Well, I’m going to have to work a lot harder.” And he’s like, “Well, then get going,”‘ she said.
She then hilariously added that her son has been pushing her to get a Tony ‘so bad.’
Witherspoon is just two awards away from achieving EGOT status as she already earned an Emmy in 2017 for Outstanding Limited Series as an executive producer of Big Little Lies and an Oscar for Best Actress for Walk the Line in 2006.
The mother-of-three famously portrayed June Carter Cash in the 2005 biographical film Walk the Line, alongside Joaquin Phoenix, a role that earned her an Academy Award
In addition to her 30-year long career as one of Hollywood’s most in-demand actresses, Witherspoon founded the production company Hello Sunshine in 2016.
She sold the company for approximately $900 to a new media company led by Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs.
The actress retained an 18 per cent ownership stake in the company and was thought to have collected $120million after taxes from the sale of her pre-existing shares.
Witherspoon has also earned millions from her film and TV career and has been consistently ranked as one of the world’s highest paid actresses as well as her clothing line Draper James.
She is currently dating Oliver Haarmann, a private equity financier, following her split from Jim Toth after 12 years of marriage. The former couple share son Tennessee.
The Legally Blonde star also shares two kids, Ava, 26, and Deacon, 21, with her ex-husband Ryan Phillippe.
