Reese Witherspoon says 'Legally Blonde' role came up in jury duty: 'You went to law school'

Elle Woods may have graduated from Harvard Law School but Reese Witherspoon did not.

The actress, who starred as the sorority queen turned litigator in 2001's "Legally Blonde," reflected on how the iconic role influenced her jury duty experience during an appearance on "The Graham Norton Show" Friday.

Witherspoon said she was selected to serve on the jury for a dog bite case in Beverly Hills, California, around seven years after the film's release.

When it came time to choose a foreman for deliberations, Witherspoon said she was unanimously nominated by her jury peers.

"I was like, 'Why did you pick me?!'" Witherspoon recalled. "And they were like, 'You went to law school.'"

She added: "This is really upsetting. I definitely did not go to law school. I didn't finish college. Like, I played a lawyer in a movie once!"

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Witherspoon's "You're Cordially Invited" co-star Will Ferrell, who was also a guest on "Graham Norton," later chimed in and asked how the case was resolved. Witherspoon said the woman who stuck her hand into the dog fight lost the dispute.

"What did your mother always tell you, 'Don't put your hand in a dogfight!'" Witherspoon said, to which Ferrell quipped, "I've always told my children, 'Put your hands in dogfights!' I feel terrible!"

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In "Legally Blonde," based on the Amanda Brown novel of the same name, Witherspoon's Elle Woods goes to Harvard Law School to win her boyfriend back. The Golden Globe-nominated film, which starred Selma Blair and Luke Wilson, grossed $141.8 million worldwide.

Witherspoon reprised the role in 2003's "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde," which also grossed over $100 million at the box office. A spin-off, "Legally Blondes," was released in 2009 but did not star Witherspoon, and a "Legally Blonde" stage musical opened in 2007.

Last May, Amazon Prime Video announced it had ordered a "Legally Blonde" prequel series titled "Elle," which Witherspoon's media company Hello Sunshine is set to produce. The streamer said the show will follow Woods in high school "as we learn about the life experiences that shaped her into the iconic young woman we came to know and love."

Contributing: Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Reese Witherspoon says 'Legally Blonde' role came up in jury duty