Cosmetic Barbie Reese Witherspoon Plastic Surgery in Legally Blonde When Legally Blonde hit the screen in 2001 Reese Witherspoon became a household name, Even though most don't know she may have underwent a plastic surgery operation for the film. If you didn't see the movie, you heard about it. In Robert Luketic's comedy Reese plays Elle Woods, the little cosmetic Barbie who’d never consider anything but plastic surgery, or a lift of any sort for a girl in a bad situation, who gains the audience laughter with Reese taking the bow