Both Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington auditioned for Clueless, and we’re ready for THAT reboot

In 2020, Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon are both A-list actors with a big list of hit TV shows and movies between them. But it wasn’t always that way. Back in the ’90s, Witherspoon and Washington both auditioned for Cluelessand were both sent packing when they weren’t cast. While it seems like it worked out for the best all around, we loved watching the two friends realize that they share this is common.

The Little Fires Everywhere stars recently bonded over their auditions for Clueless in a video interview with BuzzFeed. In the interview, they were asked about a role they auditioned for that went to another actor.

“You know, one thing that is public, and it came out last year, I auditioned so hard for Clueless, and I didn’t get it,” Witherspoon responded.

Washington added, “I did, too.” Both women then agreed that they should do some sort of remake or recreation of a scene. We think we speak for all of us when we say: Give it to us now! We need it more than ever! An IGTV will suffice! (By the way, there actually is a Clueless reboot show in the works, but it sounds very different.)

When Witherspoon says her audition was made public, she could be referring to the 2015 book As If!: The Oral History of Clueless as Told by Amy Heckerling, the Cast, and the Crew by Jen Chaney. Vanity Fair published an excerpt of the book online that talks about the casting of Cher, a role that went to Alicia Silverstone.

“I saw some movie where she had a Southern accent,” Heckerling explained of Witherspoon. “Maybe it was on TV, a movie of the week. But I did see some scenes of hers and went: ‘Wow. She’s amazing. But Alicia is Cher.’”

Additionally, Heckerling and casting director Carrie Frazier noted some other names that crossed their path, including Alicia Witt, Tiffani Thiessen, Keri Russell, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Angelina Jolie.

I don’t think anyone can deny now that Silverstone was the right choice. Plus, Witherspoon and Washington ended up doing just fine for themselves, and they still got to work together, 25 years later.

Lia Beck
Lia Beck is a writer living in Richmond, Virginia. In addition to Best Life, she has written for Refinery29, Bustle, Hello Giggles, InStyle, and more. Read more