How Winona Ryder’s first favourite actor inspired her career: “That’s who I wanted to be”
For any outcasts who grew up in the 1980s and early ‘90s, Winona Ryder became the ultimate icon for all the weirdos and high school misfits.
After breakout roles in Heathers, Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice, the actor became a symbol of defying convention and breaking all the roles, often playing characters who didn’t fit into mainstream ideas and sat somewhere on the fringes of society. Anyone who has ever struggled to be accepted can find some kind of solace through the characters Ryder plays, with a tendency towards gothic and unhinged cinema that captures a lesser-seen and sometimes mystical side of life.
But while she might be an icon to many, the actor described the one other character who influenced her natural pull towards playing the rejects of society, something that sparked from her love for Harold and Maude.
There is no movement more associated with rebellion and misfits than the New Hollywood Movement, a decade in cinema that permanently rocked the boat as a result of the rule-breaking directors who broke into the business and forever altered how we view visual storytelling.
Perhaps one of the films most synonymous with the birth of this movement is Harold and Maude, the Hal Ashby drama that rang in the beginning of the 1970s and laid the groundwork for the changes that soon crept into the industry. The story follows a young man called Harold who strikes up an unlikely friendship with an older woman called Maude, finding solace through their surprising similarities.
While there might appear to be few common strands between a film like this and Ryder’s later body of work, her love for this movie shows an early affinity towards unconventional characters and those who don’t fit the typical Hollywood mould.
The actor described her soft spot for Maude in particular by saying, “You know, my favourite actress growing up was Ruth Gordon from Harold and Maude. That’s who I wanted to be. So I’m flattered that someone thought I looked nice at the premiere, but I just want to remember to be present and to have that sort of thoughtfulness about what I’m doing.”
Adding, “As much as I hear people say that thing of, ‘Look, it’s a job—it’s a gig,’ even if you’re doing a scene and it’s just like two lines, so much can happen—and it can happen with a huge movie star who is brilliant or with a day player. I remember having a moment like that when I was 14 and working with Jason Robards. It’s in those moments that you fall in love with acting. Or re-fall in love with it.”
Ryder has always had very clear intentions with her work, not striving towards a typical Hollywood image and instead honing her entire focus on her love for movies and desire to make great work. While some can be consumed by the superficial aspects of the job, what sets Ryder apart is her apparent indifference towards this side of the industry, leading her to take risky roles and bring life to the people who have typically been excluded from the big screen.
