In the early 2000s, there weren't a large number of female characters leading films who were both hugely invested in self-presentation and intellectual output. Enter Elle Woods, the inexplicably wealthy, chihuahua-owning, hot pink-wearing sorority girl who sets her sights on Harvard Law School to win her ex-boyfriend back, before she realizes she's damn good at what she does and doesn't need him, anyway.
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After an unfortunate sequel in 2003 the Legally Blonde franchise was seemingly canceled, but now, Reese Witherspoon (the film's lead and shining light) has revealed the 15-year gap was just a hiatus and a third installment is on its way. Karen McCullah and Kirsten Smith, the first film's original screenwriters, will also return alongside Witherspoon for the Legally Blonde 3.
Witherspoon confirmed rumors with a video posted to her Twitter, paying homage to the 2001 cult classic's famous scene in which Woods films herself in a sequined pink bikini atop a pool float for her Harvard admissions essay.
The film was overtly feminist and also appropriately backwards for the noughties — addressing global issues like sexual harassment and gender discrimination in one scene, and dedicating the next to a guide for women to best position their bodies to attract a man. Needless to say, Elle Woods raised me.
Welcome to Harvard!
Image via YouTube