Reese Witherspoon has admitted playing Cheryl Strayed in ‘Wild’ was the role of a lifetime.
The ‘Legally Blonde’ actress stars as the divorcee in the drama based upon Cheryl’s real-life memoir ‘Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail’ which she penned after losing her mother and embarking on a thousand mile hike.
The blonde beauty – whose production company, Pacific Standard, adapted the biography for film – confessed the character was the hardest but most rewarding role she has ever taken on.
She told London Live at the film’s European premiere in London last night (13.10.14): "It’s really been the role of a lifetime, definitely the hardest movie I’ve ever done but also the most rewarding.
"I just go where my heart takes me and this was just a unique opportunity to create a film that has a female lead and a woman in the wild, a story about grief and loss and learning to love yourself again after terrible pain."
Reese, 38, also revealed she felt added pressure to deliver on set as Cheryl was present throughout filming.
She said: "Having Cheryl on the set was an added responsibility, I wanted to honour her story with integrity and dignity with which she wrote the book."
The movie – which is set for UK release in January 2015 – also stars Gaby Hoffman and Laura Dern and was co-written with Cheryl by ‘About A Boy’ author Nick Hornby.
Reese Witherspoon’s role of a lifetime
