While the rest of the world thinks Ava Phillippe is the spitting image of her famous mother, Reese Witherspoon, it turns out the two “don’t see it.”
“She and I Don’t See” [the resemblance] so much,” the actress said on Tuesday’s episode of “Today” after Jenna Bush Hager called the mother-daughter duo “twins.”
The “Legally Blonde” star, 46, shares Ava, 23, and son Deacon, 18, with ex-husband Ryan Phillippe. She also has a 10-year-old son Tennessee with her husband, Jim Toth.
The large age difference between her children has proved a struggle for the working mother, who went on to talk about her approach to raising children of all ages.
“You build a different relationship,” the Academy Award winner told Hoda Kotb and Bush Hagger. “First, you manage them a lot when they’re small and it’s very physical. And then it’s more emotional support. And suggestions, not telling them what to do when they get a little older.”
She continued, “But you also really need to nurture your adult relationship with your children. And give them respect and space to become who they are, not who you want them to be.”
Witherspoon has proudly stood by her children over the years, from Deacon playing his first major acting role to Ava being candid about her sexuality.
The actress’s only daughter recently revealed that she has no bias when it comes to her dating life during an Instagram Q&A.
“Do you like boys or girls?” one fan asked, to which she replied, “I’m attracted to… people! (Gender is whatever).”
Witherspoon’s mini-me has been dating her college boyfriend, Owen Mahoney, since at least 2019, but that didn’t stop “silly” trolls from sending Phillippe hate about her sexual preferences.
“QUICK REMINDER: I can and will block profiles that post bigot/hate messages under my posts,” she wrote on Instagram less than a week after the announcement.
“My Instagram profile is not a place for cruelty/hate speech and I intend to do what I can to keep it that way. Peace love.”
While Witherspoon may not think the pair look alike, there’s no doubt that Phillippe inherited her strong sense of self.