Reese Witherspoon wants society to embrace female empowerment on Women's Health cover

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The 39-year-old mother-of-three also spoke to the publication about her clothing line, Draper James, and her favorite film roles
Reese features on the cover of Women's Health's 10th anniversary issue

Published: 07:19 EST, 11 September 2015 | Updated: 10:05 EST, 11 September 2015

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Oscar-winning actress Reese Witherspoon has spoken out to urge other women to be more confident in their own success, while questioning why so many hard-working ladies are made to feel ashamed about their ambition.

In an interview with Women's Health for the publication's 10th anniversary issue, which also features Reese as its cover star, the 39-year-old actress and designer explained that she doesn't understand why society feels the need to view ambition in women as ugly or arrogant.

'How wonderful it would be for our culture not to see ambition as an ugly thing within a woman’s personality,' she said.

Leading lady: Reese Witherspoon appears on the cover of the 10th anniversary issue of Women's Health, in which she discusses the importance of female empowerment

Awesome, not arrogant: The 39-year-old actress explained that she wants society to stop viewing ambition in women as an 'ugly' personality trait

'In our society, when we see women who want to succeed or who view themselves as leaders, it’s like, "How arrogant!" Well, I think it’s fantastic.'

Far from sitting back and simply discussing the problem, however, Reese is actively working towards a solution, both as one of Hollywood's most successful leading ladies, and through her new fashion label, Draper James.

When it comes to the bright lights of the film industry, Reese, who is married to talent agent Jim Toth, is aiming to improve the way that women are seen on the screen, both in terms of the way characters are portrayed, and the roles that are available to actresses.

'A few years ago I started a company called Pacific Standard Films and it came out of looking at scripts that were coming down the pipeline in Hollywood and just feeling really, "I think we can do better. I think we can create more female roles and different ways of seeing dynamic women on screen,"' she explained.

Making moves: Mother-of-three Reese is hoping to help empower other women through the work that she does with her production company, Pacific Standard Films, and her clothing line, Draper James

Style icon: The Oscar-winning actress, who can be seen carrying a 'Hello, Sugar' tote from her Draper James collection (L), was recently named as People magazine's best-dressed person of 2015

Look legally lovely in Reese's shirt by Draper James

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Reese Witherspoon is one of the latest celebrities to unleash a clothing label onto the fashion world.

But unlike some ranges we won't mention where clearly the celebrity hasn't been involved in the design at all, you can tell Reese is all over her line. It's pretty, preppy and has plenty of Southern charm just like the lady herself.

And she obviously loves Draper James as she's spotted wearing it pretty much every day. Like this cute short sleeve blouse that looks so great with a pair of skinny jeans and heels. It's ideal for a dressed down day but would look gorgeous with a high waist skirt as well.

Click (right) to buy it now and then why not accessorise like Reese with the adorable 'Hello Sugar' tote bag also from the label (below)? You can be top to toe Witherspoon and who wouldn't want that?

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Reese's added that the company currently has several female-focused films in the pipeline, all of which feature strong leading ladies, including 'a couple of new novels' such as an adaptation of Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll, which the actress describes as 'a thriller that is in the feeling of Gone Girl', and Ashley's War, 'a true story about the first female special ops unit in Afghanistan'.

And then there's the work she does through Draper James, her incredibly successful clothing line.

The brand works closely with a charity called Girls Inc. which, according to Reese, 'creates incredible programs all over the US that empower women economically'.

'When I started Draper James, it was so important for me to give back to women who are entrepreneurial,' she added.

Reese's sophisticated sense of style actually earned her the title of People magazine's best-dressed person of 2015 on Wednesday.

Happy families: Reese has two children with ex-husband Ryan Phillippe, Ava (R) and Deacon (L), and a son, Tennessee, with husband Jim Toth (C)

Cute couple: The actress married talent agent Jim in 2011

The Walk the Line star headed a list that included Hollywood stars Julianne Moore, Kate Hudson, and 15-year-old "Mad Men" actress Kiernan Shipka.

During her Women's Health interview, Reese also spoke about some of her favorite roles that she has played throughout her career, with the actress naming the experience of playing Cheryl Strayed in Wild, a part which earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, as one of the most 'challenging and scary'.

'Playing Cheryl Straight in Wild was challenging because there was more graphic sexuality and language than I’d ever had in a film,' she added.

'I feel like my audience has grown up with me and they’re ready to see me play more mature characters.'