Witherspoon now Hollywood's highest paid actress

Reese was named Laura Jean Reese Witherspoon when she was born on March 22, 1976 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Dr John Witherspoon, a military surgeon, and Betty, a registered nurse who would later gain a PhD in paediatric nursing, gave their daughter the nickname Little Type A.

With her father serving as a lieutenant colonel in the US Army reserves, Reese spent the first four years of her life in Wiesbaden, Germany.

Fittingly, given that it is her role as June Carter, the wife of country music star Johnny Cash that has won her last night’s best actress Academy Award, when the family returned to the US they settled in the home of country music, Nashville.

Reese started modelling at the age of seven, and one of her earliest roles was at the age of nine in her school play – when she played June Carter’s legendary mother Maybelle Carter.

Five years later, in 1990, she landed her first major acting role, in Robert Mulligan’s The Man In The Moon.

Her role as a 14-year-old tomboy earned her rave reviews, and roles in bigger films followed.

But after graduating from high school, Reese put her acting career on hold to study English literature at Stanford University.

But two years later she had accepted roles to star in two major films – Fear alongside Mark Wahlberg and Freeway with Kiefer Sutherland.

Success came gradually, and Reese’s big break came with the 2001 comedy and box office smash Legally Blonde, which established her as one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.

Reese has been with fellow actor Ryan Phillipe since they met on her 21st birthday.

They both worked on the 1999 movie Cruel Intentions and married that year. Four months later she had their first child, Ava Elizabeth, and they now have a son Deacon, two.

Recently, Reese became the highest-paid actress in Hollywood history.

The star is set to get €26m for the horror movie Our Family Trouble, eclipsing the fees record held by Julia Roberts.