First Look at Reese Witherspoon in 'Wild'

It's been a down few years for America's sweetheart, Reese Witherspoon, but 2013 has seen her storm back in a big way. She's achieved a great deal of acclaim for her down 'n dirty role opposite Matthew McConaughey in Mud, and she has a key part in Atom Egoyan's Devil's Knot on the way. Last week she began filming on Wild, in which she plays acclaimed author Cheryl Strayed, and Witherspoon has just tweeted the first image of herself backpacking on the Oregon set.

Witherspoon picked up the rights to Strayed's book awhile back and for awhile it looked as if someone else would star, considering the role calls for an actress in her 20s. However, Witherspoon ultimately took it on herself, playing Strayed who went on an 1100-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail alone after the death of her mother and the dissolution of her marriage. Strayed's inspirational memoir hit #1 on the best-seller list and was an Oprah Book Club pick, so the audience is going to be huge for this one. Possibly big enough to get Witherspoon back on the Oscar stage for the first time since Walk the Line?

Written by Nick Hornby and directed by Jean-Marc Vallee (Dallas Buyers Club), Wild co-stars Laura Dern and should arrive in 2014.