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Reese Witherspoon Recounts Having 'Explicit' Sex Scene Sprung On Her At 19 By Film's Director

The Oscar winner revealed to 'Harper's Bazaar' how she learned about the scene with Mark Wahlberg while on set of 'Fear,' and that she 'didn’t have control over it.'

Reese Witherspoon
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Reese Witherspoon revealed to Harper's Bazaar that she was denied a stunt double for a sex scene with Mark Wahlberg while filming the 1996 film Fear.

She was 19 years old.

In the movie, Witherspoon played 16-year-old innocent, albeit with a bit rebellious, Nicole who falls in love with 23-year-old David, played by Wahlberg, who happened to have a much darker side.

Witherspoon claimed she was unaware of the specifics of the scene until she was on set.

“I didn’t have control over it."
“It wasn’t explicit in the script that that’s what was going to happen, so that was something that I think the director thought of on his own and then asked me on set if I would do it, and I said no.”

She added:

“It wasn’t a particularly great experience."

Witherspoon's revelation disconcerted many online who expressed their dismay over her experience.

The Independent/Facebook

The Independent/Facebook

BuzzFeed/Facebook

Some also wondered why she proceeded with the film given her concerns.


Fortunately, Witherspoon shared she was able to learn from the experience.

“I’m certainly not traumatized or anything by it, but it was formative."
“It made me understand where my place was in the pecking order of filmmaking."
"I think it’s another one of those stories that made me want to be an agent for change and someone who maybe can be in a better leadership position to tell stories from a female perspective instead of from the male gaze.”