Winona Ryder Talks ‘Crazy’ Reputation And Being Shamed For ‘Vulnerability’


Winona Ryder’s career is back on track with the overnight Netflix hit Stranger Things. Now, the actress, who has seen a career resurgence in the last few years, is opening up about a myriad of issues. One of them is the perception the media and the industry has on her image.

During an interview with New York magazine’s, The Cut, Ryder spoke about how she was branded as “crazy.” After her 2001 arrest for shoplifting at Saks Fifth, the actress suffered image issues in the public eye. Now she’s admitting that she realized it’s “impossible” to change this perception.

“I remember I did Diane Sawyer, and I talked about my experiences with anxiety and depression, and I think by doing that, maybe coupled with my physical size, there’s this ‘crazy’ thing. And I’ve realized recently it’s literally impossible to try and change that story.”

During the interview, she also tackled another issue that she’s plagued by, and that’s the perception that she’s “supersensitive.”

“‘I’m so sick of people shaming women for being sensitive or vulnerable. It’s so bizarre to me.”

The Stranger Things actress continued, “I wish I could un-know this, but there is a perception of me that I’m supersensitive and fragile, and I am supersensitive, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing. To do what I do, I have to remain open.”

The actress used Girl, Interrupted, a film which many saw as her way to get herself into a more adult lane in future projects, as an example of how women are treated for expressing their emotions in a particular way.

“Even that word, anxious. It’s a bad word. And so like all of these words — it’s kind of what I tried to do with Girl, Interrupted, and why I was so invested in that book and trying to get it made [as a movie]. My whole point was, this happens to every girl, almost.”

She also spoke to one character description some are picking up on. Of her character, she’s described as “having anxiety problems in the past,” something that Winona Ryder could probably relate to, but the actress was bothered by how some people chose to pick this apart. She stated that some think her character is “crazy” and defended her character, “I’m like, ‘OK, wait a second, she’s struggling. Two kids, deadbeat dad, working her a** off. Who wouldn’t be anxious?'”

This isn’t the only revealing interview Ryder has given since Stranger Things hit Netflix. As the Inquisitr reported, the actress finally opened up about her 2001 arrest and the subsequent media coverage that the trial received at the time. Some argue that Ryder’s career was severely damaged after finally getting age-appropriate roles that didn’t frame her as an “It” girl a la Heathers.

Of the time, Ryder said, “I won’t get into what happened, but it wasn’t what people think. And it wasn’t like the crime of the century! But it allowed me time that I really needed, where I went back to San Francisco and got back into things that … I just had other interests, frankly.”

Ryder, who was rumored to be mentally unstable at the time due to an alleged addiction to pain killers, said that something inside of her must have wanted to pursue other interests. “Psychologically, I must have been at a place where I just wanted to stop,” said Ryder.

Winona stated that during this time it was difficult to find roles that were outside of the box she was stuck in.

After her arrest and trial, it wasn’t until 2009, did fans get to see Ryder back on track in a big way, with roles in Star Trek, and a scene stealing role in Black Swan.

[Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Invision for Open Road/AP Images]

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