Reese Witherspoon Did Not Feel Complete Not Until Her Children Arrived; ‘Legally Blonde’ Actress Let Go Of Her Unpleasant Side When She Became A Mother

While she has been making notable films for more than 20 years already, Resse Witherspoon did not feel complete not until her children arrived.

 "I feel like I was so confused before I had kids, I almost got in my own way. Having kids made me clearer about who I was as a woman. I just wanted to exhibit good qualities for my daughter," says the Oscar-winning actress in the November issue of Elle.

Prior to her role as a mother, the 'Legally Blonde' star admits that she was very competitive but eventually learned to change: "I was a little competitive before I had kids- probably really competitive, to be honest. It really made me let go of that."

The actress similarly believes that being a mother influences her to create movies that will show women as "stars": "I started noticing a couple years ago that I wasn't seeing women as the stars of movies. I'm seeing them as the guys' girlfriends, or so-and-so's wife. I just thought: God, if I don't start buckling down and start producing some movies, what's my daughter going to see in the movies?"

Witherspoon has two children from her former husband Ryan Phillippe: Ava, 14, and Deacon, 9. She has another one-year-old son, Tennessee, with her new husband, Jim Toth.