Selma Blair on Being the Brunette

In the "feel-good" summer film Legally Blonde, accomplished young actress Selma Blair, of Cruel Intentions, plays Vivian, the snobby East Coast preppie...the brunette with a capital "B" to Reese Witherspoon's Blonde Elle Woods character. As a teen Selma dyed her hair wild colors to get attention. In L.A., she talked about Blonde, fame, future projects and overcoming a shy streak.

TeenHollywood.com: How do you maintain composure when everybody is shouting your name and sticking cameras in your face?

Because I'm not Julia Roberts, that only happens at events for me. It's not part of my daily life so it's pretty easy to prepare for. You go to a premiere, you put on your lipstick and plenty of mascara and you go out and you know that's gonna be that way. It's worse if it's not that way. You're prepared for that kind of thing. For me, it's not glamorous but you want to do a good job and it's part of the business.

Is there a school for that?

Apparently not. I just looked at pictures where I'm pretty frightening in a press line so I'm not one to say how to do it. Read some Cosmo and then you'll know. You figure out how to put one foot in front of the other and smile.

Vivian is kind of a classic romantic comedy character. This is a refreshingly old-fashioned film. Was that an appeal for you?

Yes it was. I think it's really reminiscent of the 1950's Technicolor movies, especially with the score, very dramatic. The characters are very over the top. I think with Robert (Luketic) being a director from Australia, he probably had a real sense of Hollywood filmmaking from a very objective standpoint. He could look at it clearly and want to make a movie with fond memories of the bygone blonde bombshell icons. My character is the typical East Coast snob, the antagonist, the nemesis. I am the Brunette. Everything is formula in this movie but it works so well.

What does this film say about women's friendships?

I think this is an amazing girl power movie without excluding guys at all. There's no anti-guy sentiment at all. Warner earns every bit of bad luck that falls on him and nothing too horrible happens. It's really a feel-good movie and Holland Taylor's character, a tough woman, really pulls for Reese at the end. My character becomes Elle's biggest fan at the end. I couldn't get through life without the few friends I have that are so close to me and my sisters. It's important in the movie, girls are really rallying for each other.

How much can you relate to what Reese's character goes through? You are a beautiful girl and I'm sure people have pre-conceived notions about your intelligence level simply because you are pretty.

Oh, I guess we all make judgements about people. I think some women who have a voluptuous body, big hair, they might get more of a rap as being unintelligent because it's just such a distracting glamour. I don't posses that, although I'm perfectly happy with the way I look but I've never had too much going on in the over-the-top looks department. We all judge people and if we have strong characters then we have some ability to not necessarily try and change their opinions but whatever we really are comes through. Elle Woods does that.

Both Vivian and Elle Woods have a basic goodness.

I think everyone in the movie mostly does. The teacher has his own agenda but the main characters who you're supposed to like at the end, you do. No one likes me right away. I'm just as offensive to the audience as Elle is to me. She's everything I'm not and everything I was taught isn't right. Elle's sunny disposition wins us all over.

There must be actresses you know who were beauty queens, always smiling. How do you deal with people like that?

I'm pretty open and real and I'm not sure that's necessarily a good thing. I think a lot of people would rather have a girl who really presents herself in a positive way all the time. I deal with them just fine. It's how people deal with me that's usually the problem.

You don't shy away from roles that expose very raw emotions. A woman on the edge. What draws you to characters like that?

Even though I've played very over-the-top characters and teenaged characters and people might not take that seriously, I think there is a real vulnerability. Any good character has a vulnerability. As soon as I start judging a character I play, then I can't play them because we don't know how to judge ourselves correctly and you can't play something you judge. You have to find something you love about a despicable character and then that helps everyone along.

There are suicidal issues in your earlier film Kill Me Later. So many young people are dealing with that.

Shawn, my character in Kill Me Later is kind of a down and out teen when we meet her. Me and all my friends went through some really down moments when we were younger. It's a huge thing growing up and not knowing how long we were gonna live and is death around the corner. It's a huge issue for a lot of people, not necessarily an unnatural one. I think any movie where you talk about an issue people relate to is good. Movies don't have to just be entertaining. They can strike a chord.

What's with the new short haircut? Is that for a role?

No, this is me. I cut it a couple of days ago. I just decided to get rid of my Jackie "O" bob. It was a little damaged from the movie Storytelling I just did. It was pink so it was fried and I was trying to blow it out and make it as conservative as I could everyday and it was just really ugly so I cut it off.

Storytelling is by director Todd Solondz (Welcome to the Dollhouse). Was that a great group to work with?

It was a huge gift. It was an amazing movie, so refreshing. I've heard a lot of things from people who've seen it. Did you do this on purpose? Were you aware it was so controversial? His movies are usually provocative and you like them or you don't. I adore him. My mom is a huge fan of his movies. I'm a huge fan. I had her blessing going into this. He picks amazing actors and I play a very human, flawed girl. She makes herself happy through other people's suffering so she doesn't feel alone. She has pink hair. It's a normal thing to seek attention. She wants to stand out. As a teenager, I dyed my hair all the time and I was the shyest girl. It was my way of communicating, Hey, I'm here! I was too shy to have a conversation a lot of the time but people would come up to me because I had funny hair.

When did you come out of your shell? You don't seem shy.

How can I be shy when you're asking me questions? I have to answer them. I'd be socially demented if I didn't speak to you. Being shy can be painful lots of times. I was really terrified when I was doing Zoe (live comedy show on the WB network). It was in front of a live audience. It was a character that was so different from me. Zoe was really a positive person and it's really hard when you're not feeling positive to get in front of an audience and play someone energetic and positive. You learn and change through fear. You find a way to be comfortable.

Was doing that show an okay experience?

It was more of a business experience to me. I think I grew up as a woman who could learn how to plan a career after that. It was wonderful for me. It wasn't such a big hit of a show that I got pigeonholed into something but I had to work with a cast every day, I got my comic timing from a sitcom. It was a valuable thing to have in your arsenal for times when you are really stuck. (Doing TV) you learn that you need a bit more control. Scripts change from week to week. Some were funny. Some were dead. Learning how to try to pull it off made me a stronger person.

You were interested in photography as a career before acting. Does being on the other side of the camera still appeal to you? Want to direct?

Not yet. Some day, I would love to do much more than I'm doing now and express myself in ways where there's more control and you have a vision. Right now I'm interpreting someone else's vision and I'm really happy with that. I'm figuring out the acting thing. I want to commit to that right now.

Do you carry a camera with you?

I carry a cheap camera with me. I always do. I wish I would have the guts to use it more on set but I really feel the need for people not to be threatened by me. I'm new at this and I'm working with such great people and I would love to have some of these film stills that I could be taking, but once I get a little more established maybe I'll have the guts to lug that out in front of everyone.

What do you do for fun?

I read. I like to exercise. I'm going on a big hiking trip this summer out West with a group of strangers. Just to make sure I can hang with everyone and get along. I'll be camping, no hotel. Getting tired at the end of the day feels really good. You realize that all the things you thought were a drag at home are pretty convenient. I have horses. I like dressage and show jumping. Back home I fox hunted a lot (just the scent, no fox). I used to compete. And I isolate a lot. I like to be by myself especially after days when I have to talk to a lot of people, enjoyable as that might be, it's pretty exhausting sometimes.

You could do character parts or be the big star. Which way do you want to go?

I don't think you necessarily have a choice over how people respond to you. I would love to have a long career. I'd love to have a career like Diane Weist, people I see repeatedly. Julia Roberts is doing okay so I'm not gonna knock super-stardom. You have to have a real star mentality to reach that. So few people have a dazzling smile like Cameron Diaz and a laugh that knocks your socks off. You can't judge if you have that or not or if the right role comes around. Let the chips fall where they may. I just want to be proud.

Log onto the Legally Blonde official web site at www.legallyblonde.com.