“Legally Blonde” Prequel Star Lexi Minetree Rewears Reese Witherspoon's Original 2001 Premiere Dress

Michelle LeeThu, June 18, 2026 at 3:37 PM UTC

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(Left) Lexi Minetree on 'The Tonight Show'; (Right) Reese Witherspoon at the 'Legally Blonde' premiere in 2001Credit: Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty; Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic -

Lexi Minetree takes on the famous character Elle Woods in the new series Elle

The 25-year-old actress appeared on The Tonight Show wearing a pink dress originally worn by Reese Witherspoon in 2001 for the premiere of Legally Blonde

Elle premieres on Prime Video on July 1

Lexi Minetree knows that Legally Blonde never goes out of style.

The budding actress, 25, is set to star as Elle Woods in the film's Prime Video prequel series Elle (out July 1). For her first talk show interview, she made a stylish statement that was not only approved by her predecessor Reese Witherspoon, but grabbed right from her closet.

Appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Minetree revealed that she wore the same pink dress Witherspoon wore to attend the Legally Blonde premiere in 2001.

Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe at the 2001 'Legally Blonde' premiereCredit: Gregg DeGuire/WireImage

Fallon held up a 25-year-old photo of the actress and producer — who originally portrayed Elle Woods — rocking a spaghetti-strap pink fishnet mermaid dress. Minetree then also posed in Witherspoon fashion as the camera panned to her in the vintage outfit, which she paired with hot pink peep-toe Steve Madden heels and an updo.

Minetree's continuation of the iconic franchise is pretty kismet. Speaking with Fallon on June 17, she revealed how she always drew comparisons to the 50-year-old Oscar winner. "Even when I was a brunette, random people would come to me and say, 'You know who you look like? You look like Reese Witherspoon.' I was like thank you very much. That is a huge compliment."

'Elle' star Lexi Minetree in New York City wearing Reese Witherspoon's 'Legally Blonde' dress in New York CityCredit: TheStewartofNY/GC Images

But when Minetree auditioned for Elle, she had to rely on more than just her looks. "I remember when I saw the open call, they wanted two scenes and a slate, so like your name, your height, where you're based and then 30 seconds on why you'd be a good Elle Woods."

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She then shared how she recreated Elle's Harvard admissions video. "I literally bought this pink bikini, I wrote this whole script, my mom helped me film it, I edited it, put music behind it, spent hours," she said.

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(Left) Reese Witherspoon in 'Legally Blonde'; (Right) Lexi MinetreeCredit: Tracy Bennett/MGM; Lexi Minetree/Instagram

Per a synopsis, the premiere season begins in 1995 with its titular character being "a fish in the tumultuous waters of high school where she encounters tricky friendships, forbidden romance and questionable fashion choices."

"Through it all, Elle uses her family as a touchstone, and forms an even tighter bond to her mother, proving that they can get through anything life throws their way as long as they have each other," the description reads. "With each challenge she faces, Elle grows closer to the Elle Woods we know and love today."

Elle is created by Laura Kittrell and co-showrun and executive produced by Kittrell and Caroline Dries. Witherspoon also serves as an EP alongside Lauren Neustadter, Amanda Brown and Marc Platt. The series is produced by Amazon MGM Studios in association with Hello Sunshine. A second season has already been ordered.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Minetree said that Witherspoon had a few simple reminders for her when stepping into the famed character's shoes. "She told me to make sure to drink water, make sure to rest, to breathe and to take in every moment here because it's such a special opportunity."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”