Reese Witherspoon Continues to Put Her Family First Despite Mega Career Success

Though she has more than 25 years of showbiz success under her belt, Reese Witherspoon continues to put her family first before her acting career. “Kids are the best part of my day. I don’t wake up to make movies. I wake up to hang out
with my family,” the 41-year-old Oscar winner recently revealed, referring to her three children Ava, 17, Deacon, 13, and Tennessee, 4.

Reese with Jim, Ava, Deacon, and Tennessee. (Photo Credit: Getty Images)

The proud mom has starred in nearly 40 movies over the years, but it wasn’t until around 2012 that Reese realized she needed to make a change. “I started a production company five years ago because I was looking at maybe the worst script I’ve ever read in my entire life and it had two parts for women,” she recalled. “And I thought, ‘God, if this is what we’ve come to, I have to get busy.’ Because you can either complain about a problem or you can be part
of the solution.” The solution was her production company, Pacific Standard, which has since brought movies including Wild, Hot Pursuit, and Gone Girl to the big screen.

“I think there’s this fallacy that because I’ve been an actor, people are going to hand me stuff. Nobody hands me anything. I’ll wake up earlier; I’ll stay up later. I will put my money where my mouth is. I have to read faster, and I respond quicker than other producers. I have to call and call and call executives until they say yes to my projects,” Reese said during another recent sit-down with Glamour.

Thankfully, Reese has a strong support system. Her husband, Jim Toth — whom she married in 2011 a few years after divorcing first-husband Ryan Phillippe — and her three kids constantly push her to succeed. “Anytime I feel defeated, my husband says, ‘Come over here, you’re the best! You’re going to do this movie, and you’re going to be great!’ Run away from a man who can’t handle your ambition. Run. So many men think ambition is awesome and sexy!” she told Glamour. “My two older kids are teenagers now, and they will pull me aside and say, ‘I’m really proud of you, Mom.’ It means a lot to me to have two kids who support my ambition to change perceptions of women.”

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Check out the gallery to see more cute photos of Reese with her kids!