By Neia Balao
3:03pm PDT, Oct 1, 2022
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You can take the girl out of the honky tonk, but you can't take the honky tonk out of the girl! Believe it or not, it's been two decades since we were first introduced to — and fell in love with — Reese Witherspoon's adorable Southern belle-turned-New York City socialite Melanie Smooter (err… Carmichael). To mark the romantic comedy's 20th anniversary on Sept. 27, 2022, Wonderwall.com is checking in on Reese and the film's other stars to see how they've aged and what they're up to all these years later!
Keep reading for more…
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By the time she starred in "Sweet Home Alabama," Hollywood darling Reese Witherspoon had already appeared in two buzzy and now-iconic films: "Cruel Intentions" and "Legally Blonde." In 2005 at 29, Reese achieved a career milestone when she earned the Academy Award for best actress for her performance as June Carter Cash in "Walk the Line." Under her production company Hello Sunshine, Reese has shifted her focus to television, having starred on and produced HBO's "Big Little Lies" (for which she earned an Emmy for outstanding limited series), Hulu's "Little Fires Everywhere" and Apple TV+'s "The Morning Show," on which she currently stars with Jennifer Aniston. After divorcing "Cruel Intentions" co-star Ryan Phillippe, with whom she has two kids who are now adults, Reese found love with talent agent Jim Toth. They married in 2011 and welcomed son Tennessee in 2012.
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Josh Lucas played Jake Perry, Melanie's big first love and estranged husband who never left Pigeon Creek, Alabama.
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Josh Lucas landed roles in a slew of flicks including "Hulk," "Poseidon" and "Life as We Know It." More recently, he appeared in the Oscar-winning sports drama "Ford v Ferrari" and "The Forever Purge." He's found success on the small screen too, including a stint on Paramount's neo-Western drama "Yellowstone." Josh was married to Jessica Ciencin Henriquez from 2012 to 2014. They share a son, Noah.
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Patrick Dempsey portrayed Andrew Hennings, Melanie's super-handsome (and super-dreamy!) fiancé in New York City.
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Many of us know where Patrick Dempsey ended up: He played as McDreamy on "Grey's Anatomy" for 10 years. In addition to starring on the hit Shonda Rhimes series — earning two SAG Awards and some Golden Globe nominations along the way — Patrick also had leading man roles in films like "Made of Honor," "Valentine's Day," "Enchanted" and "Bridget Jones's Baby." Patrick, an auto racing enthusiast who's competed in a few races over the years, has been married to makeup artist Jillian Fink, with whom he shares three kids, since 1999.
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Candice Bergen played Kate Hennings, the mayor of New York City — who's Andrew's mother. She's extremely suspicious of Melanie and her intentions with her son.
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Candice Bergen is no stranger to fame and critical acclaim! In fact, the actress had already earned Oscar and BAFTA nominations and won Golden Globes and Emmys long before she appeared in "Sweet Home Alabama." After her portrayal as the conniving New York City politician, the actress appeared on ABC's "Boston Legal" and a reboot of her hit series "Murphy Brown" as well as films like "Bride Wars," "The Meyerowitz Stories," "Book Club" and, more recently, "Let Them All Talk."
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Nathan Lee Graham portrayed glamorous and sartorially savvy Frederick Montana, Melanie's fashion mentor and close friend. Rhona Mitra played one of Melanie's best friends in New York City, model Tabatha Wadmore-Smith.
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Three years after "Sweet Home Alabama" came out, Nathan Lee Graham appeared in another great romantic comedy: "Hitch." In addition to starring on the HBO series "The Comeback," Nathan — who's also a Broadway actor and Grammy winner — landed a role on the short-lived "Riverdale" spinoff series "Katy Keene," had guest-starring stints on "Scrubs" and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and reprised his "Zoolander" role in the 2016 sequel.
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Rhona Mitra has mainly found success on the small screen, landing recurring roles on "The Practice," "Boston Legal," "Nip/Tuck" and "The Last Ship." She appeared in 2009's "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans" — the film franchise's third installment. More recently, the British actress-model played Mercy Graves on The CW's "Supergirl."
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Jean Smart took on the role of Jake's affectionate and caring mother, Stella Kay Perry.
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What's Jean Smart up to these days? A lot, actually! The Tony-nominated five-time Emmy winner went on to appear on several TV shows like "24," "Samantha Who?," "Dirty John," "Watchmen" and "Mare of Easttown" plus a slew of films including "Garden State," "Life As We Know It," "A Simple Favor" and, more recently, "Superintelligence." In 2022, she took home the Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Awards for best lead actress in a comedy series for her performance on "Hacks."
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Ethan Embry played one of Melanie's closest childhood friends, Bobby Ray.
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Ethan Embry already had fan-favorite '90s flicks "Empire Records," "Can't Hardly Wait" and "That Thing You Do!" under his belt by the time "Sweet Home Alabama" hit theaters. The California native has gone on to appear on the television shows "Brotherhood," "Once Upon a Time," "Sneaky Pete," "Grace and Frankie" and "Stargirl." In 2015, he remarried second wife Sunny Mabrey.
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Mary Kay Place played Melanie's micromanaging mother, Pearl Smooter.
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Before "Sweet Home Alabama," Mary Kay Place was best known for her work in films like "Being John Malkovich" and "Girl, Interrupted." After appearing in the Reese Witherspoon-led flick, Mary Kay starred on three buzzy HBO series — "Big Love," "Bored to Death" and "Getting On" — as well as shows like "Lady Dynamite," "Imposters" and "9-1-1: Lonestar." She's also continued to act in movies, popping up in "The Hollars," "Diane," "The Prom" and "Music" in recent years.
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Fred Ward played Earl Smooter, Melanie's soft-spoken father.
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Fred Ward, who was already an established actor by the time he landed his "Sweet Home Alabama" role, appeared in a handful of lesser known films before going on a brief acting hiatus in 2006. He made his return to the small screen with appearances on "ER" and "Grey's Anatomy." His last credited role came in 2015 on an episode of "True Detective." Fred died at 79 in May 2022.
