Radiant Reese

"Legally Blonde 2" is here. Baby No. 2 is on the way. With that -- and $15 million a picture -- you can see why the Nashville-bred actress is a true Tennessee titan.

Actress Jennifer Coolidge recalls a startling moment on the set of "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde", watching Reese Witherspoon with her 3-year-old daughter, Ava.

"My goal has been to inspire young women."

"It was like," Coolidge says, "a kid having a kid."

But the truth is, the Southern belle from Nashville is quickly gaining a reputation as a no-nonsense Hollywood power broker, with the business savvy to go with it. At 27, Laura Jean Reese Witherspoon not only stars in but co-produced the new follow-up to 2001's hit "Legally Blonde".

"She's an old person in a young person's body," says Coolidge, who plays Witherspoon's daffy beautician friend. "She knows things about the business you would only expect someone who's been around 50 years to know. Which is something you don't expect about her."

Witherspoon, who reportedly earned $15 million to reprise her role as sorority queen-turned-lawyer Elle Woods, bears little resemblance to her high-energy, pink-addicted character. Sitting in her office at Universal Studios, her tiny, Converse-clad feet are propped up on an ottoman, and she wears cargo pants and a terrycloth hoodie. Her daffodil-yellow hair is razored in a medium shag. Her only adornment is an Asscher-cut diamond ring the size of a pat of butter. Married since 1999 to actor Ryan Phillippe and pregnant with their second child, Witherspoon is self-assured and slightly aloof.

"In the context of the business, I don't make as much money as a lot of the men," she says. "Mel Gibson is getting $25 million. In the context of being a girl from Tennessee? It's a lot of money. I couldn't even begin to spend that kind of money. But it's big business."

Witherspoon plans to donate the proceeds from "LB2" merchandising -- Barbie dolls and T-shirts -- to the Children's Defense Fund. "Every child deserves health care and education," she says. But don't look for any McElle cheeseburgers. "I didn't want fast food. I'm a mom! I can't do it!"

Not only does she have an opinion about what she wants her young fans to eat, but Witherspoon also has a clear idea of what she wants her core audience (teenage girls and the boyfriends they drag with them) to see: "When I grew up, there weren't a lot of movies for young women. My goal has been to inspire young women. To know there are no boundaries."

Self-worth, she insists, is not incompatible with self-mirth. "Frivolity," she says. "I like the idea that a modern woman can be girly and interested in clothes and makeup, but also ambitious and successful."

In person, it's not hard to see why she is considered Hollywood's leading comic actress. So radiant you need Ray-Bans in her presence, Witherspoon exudes the molten glow of PG-13 box-office gold. What adolescent girl doesn't love Reese to pieces?

"I'm not perfect!" she cries. "I'm human. I make mistakes. But I try to be as conscious as I can about things I should be. If I'm going to do something commercial and mainstream and made for the masses, I just believe you can make those kinds of films with quality -- and good ideas and good intentions. There's a lot of negativity out there."

One thing you won't find her doing is flashing the peace sign at awards shows. "I'm not a politician," she says evenly. "If I want to be one, I'll run for office. Susan Sarandon, whom I know and love, is a fantastic actress. It's her right as an American to say whatever she wants. [But] just because you're rich and famous doesn't qualify you to make political statements. I don't put my opinions out there to influence people. You have a lot of influence. And sometimes I feel it's undeserved influence."

Her plan for the future: Stick with comedy. "I have that experience of sometimes feeling like the dumbest person in the room," she explains. "I didn't finish college, and no, I haven't read all the works of Shakespeare. I'm not particularly erudite. ... But funny?" Her grin is huge. The trademark Elle Woods giggle starts deep in her chest and burbles higher. "Funny is important. If I don't do funny, I'm ruined! Funny doesn't sag."

Stephanie Mansfield is a USA WEEKEND contributing editor.

Photograph by Jack Guy for USA WEEKEND.
Hair: Chris McMillan. Makeup: Molly Stern. Props: Peter Gargalianao. Wardrobe: Jorge Ramon. Jacket by Levi's.