Why Reese Witherspoon Left Pixar's Brave

Much can be said about Pixar's reputation after the release of "Toy Story 3." The threequel capped off the animation studio's unprecedented hot streak of critical success from 1995 to 2010, which came to a definitive end thanks to the widely-blasted "Cars 2" a year later. "Brave" was the follow-up to the black sheep of Pixar's filmography at the time, and although it was definitely an improvement, critics and audiences still felt the film fell short of Pixar's previous work ... though that didn't stop it from winning Best Animated Feature at the 85th Academy Awards in 2013.

Much of the lukewarm critical reception to "Brave" can be attributed to the film's production. The movie was originally conceived by co-writer/director Brenda Chapman, who was influenced by fairy tales in the vein of Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm. The project, originally titled "The Bear and the Bow," was also inspired by Chapman's relationship with her daughter and was set to be Pixar's first film from a female director (as well as the first with a female lead no less). However, due to creative differences with Disney and Pixar's now-disgraced ex-head honcho John Lasseter, Mark Andrews replaced Chapman as the director (although the two shared directing credits and both were awarded the Oscar). Andrews then proceeded to overhaul much of the story and make numerous other changes to the movie, which included recasting the actor voicing its protagonist, Princess Merida.

Oscar-winner Reese Witherspoon was initially cast to voice Princess Merida in "Brave," which would have been her second animated film following her leading turn as Susan Murphy/Ginormica in DreamWorks Animation's "Monsters vs. Aliens." According to Andrews, Witherspoon was involved with making "Brave" for quite a while before scheduling conflicts got in the way and she was replaced by Kelly Macdonald. As he told Digital Spy in 2012:

"We did have Reese Witherspoon when we started the project and she was on for quite some time. She was getting her Scottish accent down, she was working very hard, and it was sounding great, but as we were continuing with the movie, she had other movies lining up, so, unfortunately, we were unable to continue with her and had to get a replacement. Luckily, we found Kelly Macdonald, who is Scottish and fantastic in the part. Her voice is amazing, it has this great teenager quality. She had fun with it."

Years later, though, Witherspoon was far more candid while discussing her departure from "Brave." During a 2017 appearance on the British TV program "Lorraine" to promote Illumination Entertainment's "Sing" (in which she voiced Rosita the Pig), Witherspoon reflected on her attempts to master a Scottish accent and ended up being pretty tough on herself:

"Scottish is really ... I was supposed to do ... Oh no, I don't really want to talk about it! I tried to do a Scottish accent once ... It was bad, I had to quit the movie. It's not my finest moment. I don't want to talk about it anymore. That just came out and I really wish it hadn't."

Ultimately, given that "Brave" is set in Scotland during the Middle Ages, casting a Scottish actor as Princess Merida was the right call for the sake of authenticity. Although the character didn't have the same cultural impact as, say, her fellow animated royalty Anna and Elsa of Arendelle did a year later in Disney's "Frozen," Merida still has more than her share of fans, and Macdonald's voice performance was deservedly praised.

Macdonald would later go on to briefly reprise her role in 2018's "Ralph Breaks the Internet," in which Merida memorably confuses Vanellope Von Schweetz (Sarah Silverman) and the other Disney princesses with her thick Scottish dialect. (As the princesses explain to Vanellope, she's "from the other studio"). Given that Pixar continues to make sequels to much of its catalog, it's possible — if, admittedly, somewhat unlikely — Macdonald may yet return as Merida once more. Sure, "Brave" may not have the same reputation as the studio's most beloved films, but there is definitely a segment of viewers that grew up with the film in the years since its release and would be eager to go on a new adventure with Merida.

"Brave" is available to stream exclusively on Disney+. Meanwhile, you can read /Film's glowing review of Pixar's 2025 offering, "Elio," right here.