I have been wanting to do a blog post on Winona Ryder ever since I started doing my little Horror Women Friday series. She is not really so much a jump scare horror actress, more so fantasy and sci fi but I do still consider her lumped into this category. It’s been a while since I have done one of these, of course life gets in the way but also I have been saving and compiling for this one. It seems fitting with the new season of Stranger Things out and how quickly I binged that lol. This one is really important to me because she is legitimately my favourite actress. I know I have said that with each of these posts but I truly adore her so much and so many of the movies she has starred in are my top favourite movies. Her story is very interesting considering how Hollywood iced her out for so many years before she made her comeback not too long ago in Stranger Things. She also is absolutely beautiful. Not the typical LA beauty, in fact she is opposite of the blonde bombshell with her pale skin, short pixie raven hair, big dark eyes, under circles and grunge/alternative style. She is always perfect for those weirder, darker and sometimes crazier roles.

She was a household name in the 90s. Child actress who blossomed before us on screen. Literally in some of the best movies ever made (at least in my opinion). But they were the 90s alternative angel couple. Think Jennifer Anniston and Brad Pitt but darker and in my opinion cooler. She got her start in a movie called Lucas (1986). I have never actually seen or heard of this movie interestingly enough, I am sure it is good if she is in it and I will potentially check it out if I have time. Her second movie is probably where I fell in love with her all those years ago. She was the main star of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice (1988), arguably one of my most favourite movies. Or at the very least top 20 (I have many favourites). Beetlejuice she stars as the goth daughter, Lydia Deetz, to the new owners of a haunted home, she quickly makes friends with the ghosts who live in the house, because of being open to spirits. She has the most infamous line “I myself am strange and unusual” this is probably every spooky ghoul’s favourite line in a movie ever. In the same year as Beetljuice she also starred in the cult classic Heathers alongside Christian Slater. It is such an amazing movie, if you haven’t watched it I thoroughly recommend. Shortly after both of those movies, she starred in the movie Mermaids (1990) alongside Cher and Christina Ricci who are both also favourites of mine. Cher is just the most iconic. And Christina Ricci is in her own way as well. I have talked about Mermaids before with Christina Ricci’s blog post but Winona’s character is sooooo funny, ultra religious but a horny and hormonal teenager, the thoughts she has are very conflicting. It is not a horror movie at all but I think of it definitely as a Halloween movie and a cult classic. After Mermaids was Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands also in 1990. As you can see there is reoccurring role that she typically picks, but he nails it every time. She starred alongside Johnny Depp in which she plays his love interest. Incidentally they fell for each other while filming and shortly became engaged. They were the 90s beautifully alternative, dark, grunge prince and princess. Celeb royalty for sure. She lost her virginity to him and is very candid about how he Wass her first everything, she was quite young at the time, only 18 years old while him, 27. He infamously got a tattoo “Winona Forever” which he then had changed to “Wino Forever” after their breakup, and somewhat prophesying his own future. Ultimately they did not get married and eventually broke up, but both of them still speak fondly of one another. Of course we all know of Johnny Depp’s somewhat decline, I am still a fan but also weary of him because of all the horrible stories circulating about him and Amber Heard. It’s hard which story to believe and thus has somewhat left a sour taste in my mouth when it comes to him. I do still have a soft spot in my heart for him though.

After their breakup she starred in a bunch of really amazing and popular movies in the 90s.Francis Ford Coppola’s, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, an absolute masterpiece of a movie. She plays the beautiful but quiet and shy Mina Stark. An absolute legend of a role and she killed it, I think at least personally. If you have not seen this movie I strongly urge you to watch it and luckily it is currently on Netflix. She then went on to star in The Age of Innocence, Little Women, Reality Bites, How to Make an American Quilt, Alien Resurrection and then Girl, Interrupted. Of these films I have seen Little Women, Reality Bites, Alien Resurrection and Girl, Interrupted. Alien Resurrection is amazing, she is like a Ripley 2.0 and seeing her and Sigourney Weaver act alongside one another is awesome, also I just love the whole Alien franchise deeply. Reality Bites is for sure a cult classic, it’s good I have seen it a few times, not a favourite of mine. though. Girl, Interrupted is another favourite of mine. Her and Angelina Jolie are a powerhouse together. This is really horrible of me to say but when I was younger this movie made me want to go into a hospital and meet my potential new bff. Horrible, I know. Somewhat glorifies mental illness, especially to someone young, but the story is really beautiful. She was nominated for Academy Awards for both of her portrayals in Age of Innocence and Little Women. This boosted her notoriety even further and she was on top career wise in the 90s. After ending her engagement to Johnny Depp she dated a slew of men, including Matt Damon.

In the 2000s is where things took a turn for her. She starred in the melodrama Autumn in New York, alongside Richard Gere. This movie is okay. It’s a chick flick, which we all know is not really my thing but it s sad and does pull at the heartstrings. She was in the amazing comedy alongside Adam Sandler, Mr. Deeds. She is blonde in this movie which is a really interesting look for her. I much prefer her dark, raven hair though. Really funny and an instant classic especially if you like Adam Sandler movies. Shortly after this movie was filmed she was arrested for shoplifting. This was the turning point for her. The media labelled her crazy, unstable. I remember hearing stories that she was a total kleptomaniac and despite her wealth and status she loved to steal because she loved the thrill of it. There were also rumours about her sobriety. She was a drunk, she was on pills. It was really sad around this time because she wasn’t acting and Hollywood and the media was not kind to her. I missed her during this time and wished often for a new Winona Ryder film, the splendour of her past roles. She did star in some indie films during these years, butt mostly obscure films and they were not as frequent as her previous roles.

I would say in the late 2010s to now is when she has really found her place back in acting and has made a complete comeback. The things with Hollywood is they love to tear someone down and ice them out, but they love even more if they can redeem themselves and make a good comeback. in 2013 she was reunited with Tim Burton and voiced Elsa Van Helsing in the Disney movie Frankenweenie. This movie is so highly underrated I doubt most people have even seen it. It is Jaxson’s favourite movie currently, and we watch it almost daily lol. But I love it also so I am okay with that. The Movie is a black and white animated film about Victor Frankenstein bringing back his dog Sparky back to life when he gets hit by a car. Super cute and well done. Quite possibly my favourite of his animated movies. In 2016 Winona Ryder got an amazing gig when she landed the role of Joyce Byer in Netflix’s Stranger Things. In the first season you are introduced to here, and she certainly plays that crazy lady very well, but after having her son sucked into an alternate dimension and learning to communicate with Christmas light bulbs I don’t blame her. She plays the role very well and each season she improves and becomes stronger. I love seeing her character develop. I have such a strong love for this show, it is everything I ever wanted in a tv show. Suspense, horror, fantasy, sci fi, amazing acting, amazing graphics. I have nothing but good things to say about Stranger Things. I just finished season 3 a couple days ago and was sobbing uncontrollably at the end of the final episode. Definitely watch Stranger Things if you haven’t , or at least catch up on the third season if you are not caught up yet.

You can tell she just has a quirky an fun personality. She definitely has aged over the years but I think she has aged gracefully and tastefully and she is still just as beautiful. Her style is the epitome of cool. I love and admire her so much. There are several movies that she did star in from the 2000s to now that I did not mention. I have not seen a lot of her work during this time, I think not all of it was very good. But Stranger Things and Frankenweenie 10/10 recommend. I look forward to hopefully seeing her act in more of her style films in the future. And definitely more seasons of Stranger Things. There is this iconic gif that now exists from her, I think it was at the Teen Choice Awards and they were accepting an award on stage, her and the entire cast. The puzzled facial expressions she makes while on stage is absolutely hilarious and basically sums up her personality I feel like. That’s just who she is. I hope I have inspired someone to watch a Winona Ryder film, I promise you will not regret it. Winona Foreverr!