Acting is officially a family business now for Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe, after their 25-year-old daughter Ava made her debut last week on the 2025 TV schedule. Ava guest-starred on Doctor Odyssey as one of the “vixens” cruising with her girlfriends, and as The Morning Show actress posted a pic congratulating her daughter on the accomplishment, I couldn’t help but love how Ava’s character paid homage to one of Witherspoon’s most iconic roles.
Reese Witherspoon Is ‘So Proud’ Of Ava Phillippe’s Acting Debut
While many fans wanted Ava Phillippe to be cast as teenage Elle Woods in the upcoming Legally Blonde prequel series Elle, it was Reese Witherspoon doppelganger Lexi Minetree who won the role in the end. Not to worry, because Phillippe got to join with fellow nepo babies Paris Jackson and Charlotte Lawrence as vixens Veronica, Vanessa and Victoria, respectively, on Doctor Odyssey’s “Spring Break.” Ava’s mom celebrated the occasion in her Instagram Stories, posting:
Ava Phillippe’s Veronica escaped unscathed from the “Spring Break” chaos, though she had a tough week, what with Vanessa’s fentanyl overdose and Victoria’s undiagnosed heart condition causing her to become paralyzed from the waist down. It seemed like a fun project to kick off a potential acting career.
She’s not the first of the Cruel Intentions stars’ children to break into the family business, though. Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe’s 21-year-old son Deacon made his acting debut in 2022, guest-starring in two episodes of Never Have I Ever (streaming with a Netflix subscription). He’s also set to appear in the Liam Neeson heist movie 4 Kids Walk Into a Bank, which reportedly started filming in December 2024.
Ava Phillippe’s Character Nods At Legally Blonde’s Elle Woods
Reese Witherspoon is certainly proud of her daughter for nabbing a role on ABC’s high-seas medical drama (which has not yet been renewed for a second season), but that respect goes both ways. Ava Phillippe paid homage to her mom’s Legally Blonde character, donning a pink bikini alongside her fellow vixens on Doctor Odyssey. Elle Woods famously wore a sparkling pink bikini in her Harvard admissions video in one of the best films of the 2000s:
The gold initial necklace worn by Veronica on the show also seemed to be a nod to the Tiffany heart pendant that Reese Witherspoon famously rocked in Legally Blonde.
I love that Ava Phillippe has joined her parents and brother in the acting business, and I am especially obsessed with the fact that she paid homage to her mom’s iconic career while doing it.
If you missed Ava's acting debut, Doctor Odyssey’s “Spring Break” can be streamed with a Hulu subscription, and if you want to relive all of Elle Woods’ Harvard Law School fun, you can rent Reese Witherspoon’s 2001 classic Legally Blonde from Amazon’s Prime Video, Apple TV or wherever you get your rentals.
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