Elle's nemesis in the film is Vivian Kensington, the all-business brunette newly engaged to Warner, played by the talented and funny young actress Selma Blair. "Selma is perfect for Vivian because she can capture the essence of the perfect, wicked bitch, and yet underneath you can see there is an incredibly funny and nice person waiting to get out," says Robert Luketic.
Blair was thrilled to have a chance to play Vivian's nuclear nastiness to the hilt and then to reveal her transformation. "Vivian is all kinds of awful to begin with," she explains. "She's this Town-&-Country-style girl, the type who is never without her pearls and who looks down on anyone different. I've encountered plenty of Vivian Kensingtons in my life. She doesn't want to believe Elle is worthy — no matter how incredibly adorable she is — and she convinces herself it's true by being an over-the-top bitch. But when Vivian begins to see Elle as a person and not just her fiance's blonde ex-girlfriend, everything begins to change."
There's no doubt that Elle Woods has a dramatic effect on men, including causing the one man she hoped to marry to run in the other direction. It's not that Warner Huntington III doesn't really, really like Elle. It's just that his family thinks she looks like a Spice Girl, and that isn't going to cut it for a guy with Clinton-esque ambitions of law school and politics.
Warner is played by Matthew Davis, who emerged from the ranks of a mass casting call to nab the role. "He just brought the character to life," says Robert Luketic. "He had everything a girl like Elle might want — and he was able to show how Warner throws it all away in a very funny yet poignant way.
Davis sees Warner as "the great gutless wonder," he says, a guy who refuses to deviate from the path to perfection carved out for him by his family. "Warner's the kind of guy whose father can make one call and get him into Harvard," he explains. "But he's actually way in over his head. He's had it all, but that doesn't mean he knows how to stand up for himself. Elle really blows him away because she does what he could never do."
Actor Luke Wilson plays the quiet, unassuming Emmett, a foil to Warner's tentative snobbery and the first Harvard legalite to give Elle the benefit of the doubt. The screenwriters wrote the role specifically for Luke. "We wanted a shy, cute, earthy guy, and it was just obvious," notes McCullah Lutz.
Wilson immediately understood Emmett's interest in Elle. "Elle is one of those people that Emmett gets a kick out of. She stands out and he likes that. He likes that she's willing to be different," he explains, "and he helps her to be more than anybody imagined."
Professor Callahan is also trying to "help" Elle. Played by veteran stage and screen actor Victor Garber, the powerful male professor invites her to be part of his firm's internship program, only to later reveal more self-serving intentions. Garber was drawn to the screenplay because he found it "funny, touching and intoxicating." And like everyone else, he fell in love with Elle. Summarizing her appeal, he says, "She's just unique. She's funny, authentic, innocent and inspirational. And she's so much more than Professor Callahan thinks she is!"
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