[2] The character was later brought to life by Reese Witherspoon in the film series Legally Blonde, which follows Woods’ transformation from a sorority girl focused on a future with her boyfriend, Warner Huntington III, to a successful student at Harvard Law School.

In the film, Legally Blonde, Woods is a sorority sister living at the Delta Nu House at the fictional California University Los Angeles (CULA) (USC in the novel, UCLA in the musical) where she studies in Fashion Merchandising and maintains a 4.0 GPA.

Woods' boyfriend, Warner Huntington III, the son of a U.S. congressman, breaks up with her the night she expects him to propose, claiming that he needs "to marry a Jackie, not a Marilyn."

In the spin-off film, Legally Blondes, Elle is an unseen character who lives with her two younger cousins, Izzy and Annie Woods.

In the early days of the 2001 film’s casting, Witherspoon spent multiple weeks in a sorority house to assist her in bringing Elle Woods to life.

[2] In those days, she found that sorority girls were highly misunderstood and often reduced to their appearances, later contributing to her agenda to surprise audiences with Woods.

[7] Entertainment Weekly put Reese Witherspoon's portrayal of Woods on its end-of-the-decade "best-of" list, saying, "She's blonde, bubbly and carries a tiny Chihuahua.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette contends that the Legally Blonde sequel undermines female empowerment, describing it as a “retreat-quel” showcasing the “dumbing back down of Elle Woods.

[4] The Salisbury University Literature and Film Quarterly contends that Woods’ ability to use her femininity to recognize key evidence highlights the overlooked intelligence of women in male-dominated fields.