Legally Blonde (2001) Script Review | #100 WGA 101 Greatest Scripts of the 21st Century
Balancing well-written characters with sincerity, Legally Blonde turns out to be as smart and full of surprises as its protagonist.
Logline: Elle Woods has it all. She wants nothing more than to be Mrs. Warner Huntington III. But there is one thing stopping him from proposing: She is too blond. Elle rallies all of her resources and gets into Harvard, determined to win him back.
Written by: Karen McCullah Lutz & Kirsten Smith
Based on: Legally Blonde by Amanda Brown
Pages: 117
Number of scenes: 130
Legally Blonde is both of its time and ahead of its time. In the years sandwiched between the time it was written and today, it might not have found a home. But today, Legally Blonde feels like a predecessor to Greta Gerwig’s Barbie (2023), a story that embraces its femininity and its intelligence, takes shots at societal structures and expectations of blonde women, and has a blonde woman in the lead role.
What is the plot of the Legally Blonde screenplay?
The plot: After her boyfriend unceremoniously dumps her because he didn’t think she was smart enough to be his future wife, Elle Woods applies to Harvard Law School in order to impress him. Although she’s a fish out of water, her perseverance gradually wins over her peers and teachers, and lands a coveted internship at a prestigious law firm in time for a perplexing murder case.
This is Karen McCullah’s and Kirsten Smith’s second screenplay after 10 Things I Hate About You, and the writing duo bring the same energy to Legally Blonde and with better results. The script comprises of two halves: The first covers Elle’s unexpected decision to become a lawyer and her slow rise at Harvard Law School, while the second tracks her progress on a murder case where the primary suspect is a known former sorority sister. Indeed, it could easily have been two separate stories- the first being about a college experience and the second half about a legal drama, yet they fit together. Like chili and chocolate.
(Note: Although the script available online more or less resembles the final product, character names don’t always match- to save confusion, I will use the names from the film and indicate if character names in the script differ)
Who are the characters in the Legally Blonde screenplay?
Elle Woods – “21, the Goddess Queen of Delta Gamma” – the protagonist who switches from a fashion major to law in order to impress Warner only to discover she likes being a lawyer
Emmett Richmond – “a shy and quirkily handsome 28-year-old who could pass for younger” – a junior partner and love interest
Vivian Kensington – “a prim and preppy blue-blood brunette, dressed in pearls and a sweater set”— Warner’s fiancée and rival-turned-friend to Elle Woods (Sarah Knottingham)
Warner Huntington III – “21, tall, chiseled and outrageously handsome” – Elle’s ex-boyfriend who is engaged to Vivian and studying to be a lawyer
Professor Callahan – “40s, a big fan of himself, salt and pepper hair, no time for bullshit” — a law professor and partner at a prestigious firm who initially supports Elle only to try and seduce her (Professor Donovan)
Paulette – “early 40s, lower-middle class, hard-edged, plus-sized” – a divorced manicurist with an unrequited crush on a handsome UPS Guy who befriends Elle
Is Legally Blonde a romantic comedy or a legal drama?
Despite the legal angle in the latter half of the script, Legally Blonde is primarily a romantic comedy and therefore contains several ingredients from the genre- love interests, rivalries, shenanigans, unrequited crushes, and so on. One way it sidesteps potential cliches is to give depth to its characters, and none more so than its main character. Elle may not be typical law school material but she is smarter than people give credit for; more importantly, she is a kind person at her core. The latter trait manifests in her friendship with Paulette, such as using her legal knowledge to confuse and retrieve Paulette’s dog from her shitty ex-husband, Dewey (page 59-60)…
… and teaches her the “Bend and Snap” move to increase her chances of getting a date with the handsome UPS guy (page 69-70)…
Interestingly, the “Bend and Snap” move was made up on the spot by the writers while drinking at a hotel bar and trying to figure out a big set piece for the second act when McCullah suggested it could be as simple as Elle teaching Paulette how to use a move to help pick up the USP guy.
“Ooh, like this?” said Smith, jumping off her bar stool and doing the move.
It also converts Vivian from an enemy into a friend by the end of the script, especially when the two women share notes and realize that Warner is inept (he only got into Harvard through his father’s contacts) and terrible (he tries to hit on Elle after the script’s climax). Indeed, the villains of the script are the men- the aforementioned Warner, and Professor Callahan using his power to try and seduce Elle, something that feels extremely relevant in the post-#MeToo era. Emmett, though, shouldn’t be lumped in here- he is the only one who believes in Elle from the start. By allowing Elle to make unexpected choices and decisions, the jokes never fall flat and the script is enjoyable.
If I have a concern, it’s the script’s ending where Elle’s dream to set up a Blonde Legal Defence Fund pays off in her second year and the revelation that Vivian dyed her hair blonde. It’s abrupt and doesn’t feel satisfying. When I checked out the film, it seems the writers and directors agreed with me— in the film, it ends with Elle graduating at the top of her class and a job offer in hand and delivering the valedictorian speech, while a series of captions outline the fates of Vivian, Warner, and Paulette (as if it was based on a true story). It also brings the story full circle- given that the whole thing started with Warner dumping Elle on a night she thought he was going to ask her to marry him, it ends with a note that Emmett was planning to propose that night.
I said the script was also a product of its time. But that’s largely due to the technology used and available when it was written. Smartphones are not yet invented, the initial cell phones aren’t as pervasive, and students still have to use the library for studying. I wonder if Legally Blonde could have been set in today’s times and worked. It wouldn’t surprise me if Vivian and everyone who dismissed Elle created a social media account to mock and harass her (especially when she wears her Playboy Bunny costume). Smartphones and technology really do make it difficult to tell stories in several ways.
Legally Blonde is proof that well-written characters are the key to a script’s success, none more so than in romantic comedies. It’s fun, it makes you care, and it gives plenty to chew on between the lines. It’s a script that serves as proof that women can be feminine and smart, without having to choose one from the other.
Notes:
ʻLegally Blondeʼ Oral History: From Raunchy Script to Feminist Classic