As if Reese Witherspoon needed any more reason to be considered the delightful and adorable person that she is, an unusual letter written to fellow actress Naomi Watts praising her work in the new film “The Impossible” has hit the web. In the letter she shared with Entertainment Weekly just as the Academy Awards nomination frenzy is heating up, the 2006 Best Actress winner heaps accolades onto Watts’ performance as a woman caught up in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami in such a heartfelt way one can’t help but wonder if it could help land Watts a nod in the fiercely competitive category.
Comparing Watts’ work in the film to other groundbreaking female performances like Meryl Streep in “Sophie’s Choice” and Sally Field in “Norma Rae,” Witherspoon comments how she “could not speak for 24 hours after seeing the film. It was more than a movie. It was a meditation on life and family and humanity. It was fortifying.”
“Your brutal physical performance, the ferocity of your mothering spirit and the soul touching moments where you hold on to life with every part of your being were incredible,” she continues in the letter.
Life has been treating Witherspoon pretty well this past year, so it makes sense that she would be more than willing to pay it forward. Not only did she marry entertainment agent Jim Toth in March of last year (donning a very “Elle-Woods”-pink dress, I might add), but the couple also added a new bundle of joy to their brood, son Tennessee, in September. The bouncing baby boy joins Witherspoon’s 2 other children, Ava and Deacon, from her first marriage to Ryan Phillippe.
And while the young mother may be taking a step back from acting to focus on family for the time being, it’s quite clear her adoration for fellow acting colleagues has not diminished. We love you Reese! Your super-cute offer to “tap dance on Sunset Boulevard” in support of Naomi is probably not necessary though; with nominations from both the Screen Actors Guild awards and the Golden Globes, we’re pretty sure Naomi’s got an Oscar nom in the bag.