The two have played the role of sisters before on Friends, and now Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston have joined hands once again for their new Apple TV+ series, The Morning Show. However, the two women believe that the drama wouldn't have been possible 10 years ago. It is only after the recent advancements made post the #MeToo movement that their show could become a reality, which the two actresses (and BFFs) discussed on their recent interview for Radio Times, along with their own experiences with harassment in the male-dominated film industry.
When Witherspoon was asked about facing harassment, she said, "Of course I have. I don't think there's a woman in the world who hasn't. I've been doing this for 30 years; it was very normalised when I first started." The Big Little Lies star continued, "It was almost a condition of employment to look the other way about comments, or even things that were more egregious. That's why [The Morning Show] is really interesting – it addresses the systemic abuse of power. How did it get so out of hand?"
To which, Aniston added, "I'm aware that I have had a pretty easy time in terms of my experience in the business. But even back on Friends, it wasn't so much about women being paid the same as men – some of the women were being paid more." The Murder Mystery actress revealed, "It was more about, 'We're doing equal work and we all deserve to be compensated in the same way.' I wouldn't feel good going to work knowing someone was getting x amount and I was getting something greater."
But focusing on the positive, Witherspoon said, "There's a need for new, fresher storytelling and that has changed the way stories are being made. Jen and I probably wouldn't have been able to make this show 10 years ago – but now people are taking [women] more seriously as creators and producers."
Aniston further added, "When we started ... nothing had happened with Harvey Weinstein or Les Moonves yet," she said. Once the sexual harassment stories broke, Aniston revealed, "We decided we needed to start from square one and redevelop everything with more of a slant about ... people being held accountable for their behavior."
