Reese Witherspoon had one message for red carpet reporters on Sunday: Forget about the dress. Ask her more.
Witherspoon was the celebrity face of the social media campaign #AskHerMore at the Oscars on Sunday, urging red carpet reporters to ask more engaging questions of Hollywood's top women.
"We're more than just our dresses," Witherspoon said on the red carpet. "We are so happy to be here and talk about the work that we've done. It's hard being a woman in Hollywood, or any industry."
The hashtag campaign started with a group called The Representation Project and recently caught on with Amy Poehler's Smart Girls, a website dedicated to inspiring young girls and women. Oscar red carpet watchers were encouraged to tweet their questions for Hollywood A-listers under the hashtag #AskHerMore during the red carpet event, especially when they caught a reporter asking a fashion question.
Witherspoon championed the hashtag on social media earlier in the day Sunday.
"There are so many amazing and talented nominees this year," she wrote on Instagram. "Let's hear their stories!"
'Girls' star Lena Dunham also tweeted her support for #AskHerMore on Sunday. "Ask her about the causes she supports, not her support garments," Dunham said on Twitter.
"On the red carpet, every female celebrity is subjected to the kind of questions that make it clear that her career takes a backseat to her appearance," wrote Dara Laine, a blogger for Smart Girls. Laine says #AskHerMore is a chance for viewers to "call out" red carpet reporters who fall back on cliché fashion questions.
Smart Girls mocked traditional red carpet reporting in a video released earlier this week starring Heather Morris of 'Glee.' The video includes several clips of Laine asking Morris a list of inane questions about what she's wearing, what's in her purse and how she does her hair. Morris responds with a series of mock serious responses.
Witherspoon is just one of several female celebrities to lash out against Hollywood recently in response to its obsession with women's fashion. Jennifer Aniston and Julianne Moore refused to model their manicures earlier this year.
In her Oscar acceptance speech, Best Supporting Actress winner Patricia Arquette launched into her own call for action, saying it’s time for equal wages for women in the workplace.
"It's our time to have wage equality once and for all, and equal rights for women in the United States of America," Arquette said.
Meryl Streep was among Arquette's biggest cheerleaders in the crowd, clapping and pointing to the stage while shouting "Yes!"
