Reese Witherspoon's Tracy Flick Is Back: All About Her Election Sequel

The perfect candidate for an Election sequel?

Reese Witherspoon, of course. Twenty-three years after playing Tracy Flick in the original movie, the actress is reprising her role in the new Paramount+ film Tracy Flick Can't Win, Paramount Pictures announced Dec. 8.

The movie is based on Tom Perrotta's book by the same name, which finds Tracy back in high school as an assistant principal. And after the longtime principal announces his retirement, Tracy sets her sights on getting the job.

"Energized by the prospect of her long-overdue promotion, Tracy throws herself into her work with renewed zeal, determined to prove her worth to the students, faculty, and School Board, while also managing her personal life—a ten-year-old daughter, a needy doctor boyfriend, and a burgeoning meditation practice," the book's description on Simon & Schuster's website reads. "But nothing ever comes easily to Tracy Flick, no matter how diligent or qualified she happens to be."

Reese Witherspoon's Best Roles

In the 1999 film Election, which is based on Perrotta's 1998 book of the same title, Tracy runs for president of her high school's student body. However, she's not the only one on the ballot. Her teacher Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick) tries to ruin her political aspirations by convincing jock Paul (Chris Klein) to be her opponent. Paul's sister Tammy (Jessica Campbell) then decides to run as well.

And Witherspoon, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for her performance, knew she wanted to be a part of the movie right from the get-go.

"I just remember the audition, and I said, 'I don't know who you're thinking about for this part, but it's me,'" she told HuffPost in 2014. "I think I had a little bit of Tracy Flick going on in the audition, but he ended up casting me."

While many wondered if Tracy would still be involved in politics today, it looks like her life has taken her in a new direction.

"Over the years, people have wondered out loud, 'What would Tracy Flick be doing?'" Perrotta told Esquire in June. "Some would say, 'She's going to be running for president,' or, 'She's conquering the world in some other way.' But that never felt quite right to me. It was so hard for her just to be elected the president of her high school, so I couldn't imagine how she's going to conquer the world. Then I realized, ‘She's still in that high school, and she's still fighting for every inch of ground.'"

In addition to starring in Tracy Flick Can't Win, Witherspoon is producing the film along with Lauren Neustadter for Hello Sunshine—the media brand the Oscar winner founded in 2016 and sold last year—as well as Albert Berger and Ron Yerxa of Bona Fide Productions. Paramount Pictures also noted that Perrotta will serve as executive producer and that Alexander Payne—who directed and co-wrote the screenplay for Election—will direct and write the new film adaptation with Jim Taylor.

Witherspoon hinted in a July interview with USA Today that she was "reprising a character I played a long time ago." Perhaps fans shouldn't be too surprised it's Tracy considering her fondness for the movie.

"This film holds a special place in my heart," Witherspoon tweeted on Election's 20th anniversary in 2019. "If #TracyFlick taught us anything, it's to be a go-getter...and always carry cupcakes!"

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