Reese Witherspoon Admits to Feeling "Really Confused" While Playing a Drug Addict

Wild actress also talks about her movie fears in Harper’s Bazaar

By Mike Vulpo Dec 02, 2014 12:56 AMTags
E! Placeholder Image

When Reese Witherspoon decided she was going to play a former drug addict in the upcoming film Wild, she couldn't exactly lean on past experience.

"I've never done drugs," she shared with Harper's Bazaar U.K. "I was really confused. I didn't know what I was doing."

But despite a lack of knowledge with her character's habit, the actress knew this role was going to be special.

"It just required being in a really raw emotional place that didn't feel good," she added.

That mindset is on full display as she channels a woman's pain in the film based on Cheryl Strayed's best-selling book, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail.

If you thought the drug use was intense, we can't neglect to mention the sex scenes. They were just as difficult to shoot for the big screen

"[The sex scenes were], like, three percent of the movie, but it took up a tremendous amount of fear in my mind because it's daunting," she shared with the publication on sale Tuesday. "Sometimes I was just terrified. Like a cat on a raft…‘You can't make me do it.'"

Regardless of the difficult moments, Witherspoon knows that roles like these don't exactly come around every day for women. As a result, she had to follow through and do her absolute best.

‘It wasn't as if there was a lack of roles being offered to me. It was the dynamic aspect of playing a really interesting, complicated person that was not readily available," the 38-year-old explained. "It's strange that you don't see many complicated women on film; complicated meaning complex, I should say."

Based on her recent role, does the proud mom want to stay away from dramas in the future? Not so fast! She will, however, happily enjoy a comedic role.

"[Dramas are] always going to require something that doesn't feel good, some sort of challenge or emotional gutting. It's not a fun space to live in a lot of the time," she admitted. "It's why I enjoy doing comedies. It's much easier, thinking of what rhymes with truck."

See Witherspoon's big project on the big screen when it hits theatres this Friday!