AUGUST 19, 2019 Star 37

R

EESE Witherspoon seems, to

outside eyes, perfect. Perky, together,

approachable, she appears to be a mashup

of the best parts of Big Little Lies’ queen

bee Madeline and Legally Blonde’s

cheery, ambitious Elle Woods, sipping

whiskey in a teacup and effortlessly

adapting novels and winning Oscars. But beneath that

Superwoman exterior, sources say, the star is actually

on the verge of imploding from stress. And the pressure

— from many areas in her life — could be leading to a

fracture in her marriage. “Reese is the most cool, calm

and collected woman you’ll ever meet, ordinarily,” says

a source. “But lately, a few things have been getting the

best of her, and she feels like she’s about to crack.”

“NOTHING LEFT” FOR HER HUSBAND

Reese is at the peak of her professional life, killing it

in myriad platforms. But just when she should be on

top of the world, she’s feeling personally vulnerable,

particularly in her relationship with her husband,

Hollywood agent Jim Toth. “It’s pretty widely known

that she’s having trouble in her marriage,” a friend

confides. “They’ve been on the ropes ever since

Jennifer Aniston’s birthday party back in February,

when Reese got so steaming drunk that Jim left

without her.” But booze really isn’t the issue, the friend

suggests — time is. Reese is “so all-consumed with

the other things in her life, especially her work and her

kids, there’s really nothing left for Jim.” Reese’s to-do

list is infinite: being mom to three children (Ava and

Deacon, whom she shares with ex Ryan Phillippe, and

Tennessee, her son with Jim); producing and starring

in films and series like Big Little Lies and Hulu’s Little

Fires Everywhere, along with a zillion other projects

in development by her production company, Hello

Sunshine; overseeing retail fashion and home-goods

lines; and being actively involved in philanthropy and

activism in Hollywood. What downtime?! Jim has “put

up with being second and even third best for a year or

so now, and he’s told friends he’s not sure how much

longer it can go on like this,” a tipster shares. Reese is

aware of the issues, the source says, but “she’s simply

so busy she doesn’t know how to fix it.”

DETERMINED TO BE PERFECT

The news that Big Little Lies — despite its mega

popularity — won’t have a season 3 has particularly

stung the producer-actress at an already difficult time,

sources say. The show was “Reese’s baby, and she

threw everything she had into it,” says someone close

to the series. “When she got the news that they were

done after season 2, she had a bit of a breakdown. She

was so down about it, she felt all her hard work was

for nothing.” And Reese doesn’t deal with rejection

or disappointment well, a source says — so the BLL

setback was crippling. “Reese is all-or-nothing, and

things must always go according to her plan,” says a

source. “Right now, there are a few things out of her

control, because she’s taken on too much. Friends are

worried she’s at a breaking point. Anyone would be.” ★

Third Wheel

With Reese’s mountain of

responsibilities, her marriage has

been getting short shrift.

GE