“One of the greatest privileges of my life was having conversations with Reese about making the show and about her experience of being Elle Woods in the movies,” Lauren shared. “This whole thing started with her. She really saw an opportunity to connect with young women and bring Elle Woods to a whole new generation.”
For Lauren, the timing of the series was especially important.
Creating a prequel, however, came with its own set of challenges. Since audiences already know where Elle Woods eventually ends up, the team had to find a fresh way into her story while staying true to the spirit of the original.
Laura Kittrell said the answer came from revisiting what had first made her fall in love with Legally Blonde.
“When I thought about seeing the movie for the first time, the thing that I latched onto the most was the fish-out-of-water nature of it,” she explained. “That was the first nugget that I grabbed onto. How do we have that theme on the television show without making it feel repetitive from what the movie was?”
“I loved the fish-out-of-water element, and I loved the nostalgia of the ’90s. If you do the math, Elle Woods as a 16-year-old grew up in the mid-’90s. That became an important part of the show, seeing her in a different environment and a different era, so it didn’t feel like we were simply rewatching the movie,” said Caroline.
The creators were also conscious of inevitable comparisons with Legally Blonde. Rather than recreating the film beat for beat, they wanted to capture the same emotional experience while telling a completely new story.
Diving deeper into the themes of the show, Caroline added, “Thematically, there is optimism, joy, and authenticity. Elle carries a certain confidence. There is also fashion and her wardrobe. The clothes are so iconic in the movie, and they’re so iconic on the show. They really pop because the world around her is Seattle grunge, so she’s a real standout.” Laura believes that the character’s hopeful spirit is what ultimately sets Elle apart.
“There’s a lack of cynicism. There are cynical characters within the show, but because Elle’s character doesn’t have that as a quality, the tone of the show has a positive outlook on life. That’s what I think about a lot.”
Elle stars Lexi Minetree as the titular character along with June Diane Raphael, Tom Everett Scott, Jacob Moskoitz, Chandler Kinney, Zac Looker and Amy Pietz, among others. The series is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
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