By Thomas Chau in New York City

When I was in high school, I would always cheat out of reading boring books of literature by renting the movie adaptation of the story. Thankfully, I was never assigned William Thackeray's "Vanity Fair," as not only was the novel thicker than a Manhattan phone book, but a film version to this British classic has not been since 1935. Since then, "Vanity Fair" has been retold in the form of mini TV series, but by the time you get through them, you might as well have read the whole damn thing.

This fall, director Mira Nair ("Monsoon Wedding") introduces the story to a whole new generation. Reese Witherspoon takes on the role of Becky Sharp, one of the most celebrated and complex female characters in literature. The story takes place circa 1820 and tells the story of a young woman from an impoverished background. She relies on her "wit, guile, and sexuality" as she struggles to make her way up the social classes of England.

Reese, coming off her latest film, the Johnny Cash biopic titled "Walk the Line," sported a brunette hairdo as she walked into the press room in New York City. Below is what she had to say about playing one of England's most cherished literary figures.

Q: How do you go from doing something like “Legally Blonde 2” to portraying one of the most famous characters from 19th century literature?

REESE: I just gotten through doing “Legally Blonde 2” which was a lot of fun, but I always try to look for something really different after every film I finish. Mira Nair and I had met two years earlier just to talk about projects. I just loved her work and I thought that she would be a great person to work. Also, I was very interested in working with female directors and women in the business. She called me up and said that this was something that she was working on and she would really love for me to do it. So I read it and was blown away by it. Then Julian Fellowes did an amazing draft of it and I was even further blown away and we decided to make this movie.

Q: And then you found out you were pregnant…

REESE: And then I found out I was pregnant! So then I called Mira and asked if I could do this movie while pregnant and she said, “O.K., yeah, when are you thinking about getting pregnant?” “Um, I’m already about four weeks pregnant, so we better get going.” She was a great sport about it. She thought it was going to help the piece and then she really used it as part of the film.

Q: How did your pregnancy help with the film?

REESE: It’s beautiful, it’s real and it’s what really happens. I think it adds to the vulnerability to the character because I think the character has vulnerability - just that sense that there’s something real that’s happening. She may never see her husband again and she’s having a child. Life’s interesting. It added a lot of dimension, for me, to that character at that time. What would it be like to give birth at that time and be a woman at that time?

Q: Why did you want to work with Mira?

REESE: The reason why I’m so attracted to her work is that she has this way of putting sexuality in her films but in a way that’s not gratuitous, not overt, but very female. It’s hard for me to describe it but it has a lot to do with colors and mood and so I felt very comfortable with her.

Q: So is this a Hollywood movie? A lot’s been made of the fact that you’re the only American actor in it…

REESE: Yeah but in a sense that it has Western ideas in it; that it’s based on classic English literature; it’s certainly not a film not based on her ethnicity. I think this is very much a film made by an American studio and that’s sort of what I’m talking about in that sense.

Q: So does being the only American actor help with playing the role? Your character, too, never seems to be quite comfortable with where she’s at among the social ranks…

REESE: I think definitely being an outsider and being the only American certainly helped informed those things for me. Also, coming to a piece of literature like this is so revered and people know it, and people know the characters. It was nice being able to come to it with a fresh perspective and having somebody like Mira who also feels like an outsider, being outside of that culture. We were sort of collaborators in that way. How are we going to turn this on its ear, all while maintaining the respect the material deserves? In a way, it gives you opportunity to feel more free within the character. I think that’s how Thackery would’ve wanted it.

Q: How do you think “Vanity Fair” addresses modern day issues?

REESE: I think the universality of being of a certain social class or social economic status in your life, and trying to reach up, is a very universal idea. I think everybody understands what that’s like, particularly in America – they reach for something bigger, or better, or higher, whether it’s money, or jobs, or degrees. Also, I think there’s the war element that’s obviously on a lot of people’s minds and the feelings of women staying behind in war. But I think, also, just the idea of wanting so much and once you get it, is that what you really wanted? I think that’s what Mira wanted the overall focus of the film [to be]. It’s one of the last lines of the book. I think everybody can sort of understand that. I always feel like we’re running a race towards something and if you ever get there, I think a lot people think, this is what I was waiting for? It raises a lot of interesting questions that I think people think about all the time.

Q: Do you see similarities of that with being a movie star?

REESE: I think about the quote somebody said to me: “The best job you ever had is the one you get right before the one you always wanted.” I think there’s something in striving for more and that’s why I really like what I do. As much as people think you’re in a good place, and you get a lot of great offers, I constantly feel like I’m striving to do better or striving to get a better job or work harder or find a greater challenge. In this business, you can always do that. You can be “made” but the opportunities are always there for you to push yourself.

Q: What made you interested in playing Johnny Cash’s wife, June Carter, for his biopic?

REESE: I was desperate to play June Carter Cash! I would’ve walked on my hands and knees halfway to Memphis to play June Cater Cash. It was partly [that] I grew up in Nashville, Tennessee. Country music is just part of my heritage, my upbringing, and my blood. But I think there’s really something amazing about the love story between her and Johnny Cash and how it endured for so many years. They were two people just meant to be together and work side by side for twelve years before they ever were able to express their love for each other. It was hard and tumultuous but that’s what love is. I just think there’s something really beautiful and real about that. It’s been so hard; it’s one of the hardest movies I’ve ever had to make. But it’s been so educational and enriching. I feel thrilled to be a part of it.

Q: Do you think in 20 years, someone will do a movie about you and [your husband] Ryan [Phillippe]?

REESE: Gosh, I hope not! No, no, no. These people are so cool. These people play music. She plays five different instruments. Her family brought country to America. Good grief no, I’m just a girl from Tennessee doing the best she can.

Q: With these two films being serious dramas, are you worried you’re moving away from comedy?

REESE: No, next up, comedy! Brace yourself for the funny, ‘cause I’m so ready to laugh!

Q: Are you ready to be blonde again?

REESE: I am ready to be blonde again.

"Vanity Fair" opens in theaters September 1st.