News | Entertainment
12 Nov 2025 15:23
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Reese Witherspoon had panic attacks "for weeks" before filming 'Wild'

    The 45-year-old actress admitted making the 2014 movie - which is based on Cheryl Strayed's memoir about getting her life back together by hiking the Pacific Crest Trail - was the biggest career challenge she's ever faced and she turned to hypnosis to calm her fears before she started work on the project


    Speaking to Tracee Ellis Ross for Interview magazine, she admitted: "I was so scared to do that... I had hypnosis, I was so scared. I was having panic attacks for three weeks before I started.

    “There was the nudity, sexuality, and drug-use aspect, but also being alone on camera with no other actors. I hadn’t ever been alone in scenes for days and days. There were probably 25 days of the shoot where I had no other actor opposite me. It was just me and a camera and a backpack. I was like, ‘Is this going to be so boring?’”

    And the 'Big Little Lies' star admitted making the film changed her forever after pushing her to her limits.

    She said: "I don’t know if I’ll ever work that hard again, but it changed me on a cellular level.”

    But Reese - who has Ava, 21, and Deacon, 17, with ex-husband Ryan Phillippe, as well as Tennessee, eight, with spouse Jim Toth - thought Cheryl's book was "beautiful and sacred" because it had taught her a lot.

    She said: “[It] was so beautiful and sacred to me because it spoke to me so deeply about how we as women have to save ourselves. There’s no mother or father coming to save us. There’s no spouse.

    "I thought it was radical that at the end of the film, she ends up with no family, no money, no job, no partner, and she’s happy.”

    © 2025 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     11 Nov: Hilary Duff insists Disney weren't "willing" to embrace Lizzie McGuire in her 30s
     11 Nov: Kelsey Grammer says his family are "ecstatic" about his new baby boy
     11 Nov: Millie Bobby Brown won't be revealing her daughter's name to the world
     11 Nov: Sam Smith had liposuction at 13 after being mercilessly "teased" about their weight
     11 Nov: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex is returning to acting for the first time in almost a decade
     11 Nov: Aimee Lou Wood has described Los Angeles as "emotionally bulimic"
     11 Nov: Ariana Grande has made it clear that her music career is far from over, despite her growing presence in Hollywood
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    International hockey is inbound for Dunedin this summer More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    Andrew Mountbatten Windsor shuts down royal business venture Pitch@Palace More...



     Today's News

    Hockey:
    International hockey is inbound for Dunedin this summer 14:57

    Business:
    Andrew Mountbatten Windsor shuts down royal business venture Pitch@Palace 14:47

    Living & Travel:
    The Silver Ferns aren't just celebrating an emphatic 2-nil series win over Scotland to kick-start their Northern netball tour 14:37

    Politics:
    Cross party support for speeding up Kiwi access to new medications 14:27

    National:
    As Black Friday sales kick off, these are the dodgy sales tactics to look out for 14:17

    Law and Order:
    A 24-year-old man has been charged with murder - over the death of Tristan Oakes last month 14:07

    Rugby:
    Men's world number one Carlos Alcaraz knows he needs to stay locked in if he's to end his season on a high at tennis' ATP Finals 13:57

    Accident and Emergency:
    Coromandel Peninsula's State Highway 25 remains closed south of Whitianga - after a crash about 10am 13:47

    International:
    Hongqi Bridge partially collapses in southwest China just months after opening 13:37

    Law and Order:
    The Court of Appeal's upheld a High Court ruling covid face covering orders were lawful 13:27


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2025 New Zealand City Ltd