Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe have been staples in the Hollywood scene for years, but the former couple’s teenage daughter, Ava Phillippe, is making a mark of her own.
Ava, 19, who has grown to be the spitting image of her Oscar-winning mother, 43, made her debutante debut in Paris in November 2017.
She’s also begun stepping out for red carpets independently of her famous parents, who called it quits on their marriage of nine years in 2008. (The exes also share son Deacon, 15, and Witherspoon is also the mother of Tennessee, 6, with husband Jim Toth while Phillippe shares daughter Kai, 7, with Alexis Knapp.)
The fledgling model shares more than physical traits with her look-alike mom: A source told Us Weekly in June 2018 that the pair are also super close. “They’re best friends,” the insider revealed. “They just love being together.”
But Ava is far more than Reese and Ryan’s eldest child: Find out five fast facts about her below!
She’s Named After Ava Gardner
Witherspoon revealed her and Ryan’s inspiration for their eldest child’s name during an appearance on Jay Leno. “My daughter’s name is Ava… [like] Ava Gardner, because to me she was the only woman who could break Sinatra,” the Big Little Lies star reportedly said at the time. “So the idea of that name to me is very classy and strong.”
She Just Finished Her First Year of College
Ava shared an ode to her first year of college on Instagram Stories in May with a series of photos of herself, her boyfriend, Owen Mahoney, and pals that included game days, vacations and, of course, homework. Witherspoon admitted during an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that same month that she wept when her daughter left for school one year prior. “It’s weird when your children go away to college,” she told host Ellen DeGeneres. “It’s hard. I never imagined how it felt for my mom. I might have gone into [Ava’s] empty room, laid down on her bed and cried when she went to college.”
She’s Not Afraid of a Little Hard Work
Ava isn’t resting on her laurels just because her parents are famous: In addition to being a model for her mother’s Draper James fashion line and big name fashion houses such as Rodarte (Ava starred in the brand’s fall 2018 lookbook), the young starlet worked at a pizzeria called Pizzana in L.A. as a hostess for a summer.
She’s a Talented Artist
Ava regularly shares her artistic creations, which include everything from notebook sketches to clay sculptures. “Making a clay being,” she captioned one such handiwork on Instagram.
She’s Dating Owen Mahoney
The model shared a sweet snap of her boyfriend Mahoney, on Instagram on Sunday, June 9, to much fanfare, as fans think the college student bears a striking resemblance to 44-year-old dad Ryan.
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Ava thanked one commenter who dissented with the majority, writing, “He does not look like your dad.”
“Big thx,” she replied.
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