Actress Reese Witherspoon reveals her ‘Wild’ side

Reese Witherspoon plays a young woman on a journey of self-discovery in ‘Wild’ due out later this year. (Courtesy of Fox Searchlight)

Reese Witherspoon thinks she’s “Wild.” The actress, who has recently shaken off the good-girl image she used to charm her way onto the big screen, tells The Reliable Source she most identifies with her gritty, real-life character, Cheryl Strayed, in the upcoming film “Wild.”

“It was definitely the hardest role of my entire career, just the physical aspects of it, but also the emotional journey that Cheryl Strayed went on was very personal to me,” said Witherspoon on Wednesday at the D.C. screening of another one of her latest films, “The Good Lie.”

“Wild,” due out later this year, is based on a New York Times best-selling memoir that chronicles Strayed’s 1,100-mile hike up the Pacific Crest Trail in an effort to overcome a series of personal tragedies.

Witherspoon, who spent quite a bit of time with Strayed (according to Instagram) to prepare for the role, has built her public persona on her Southern charm. But have we all just been fooled? Videos of her letting loose at a friend’s wedding, having some honest girl talk in an elevator, and well, that run-in with the cops last year, reveal that Witherspoon perhaps is as “wild” as she claims.

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