Winona Ryder’s criticisms of Francis Ford Coppola’s directing style: “I was scared”
In 1988, Winona Ryder starred in Beetlejuice, her first of several collaborations with Tim Burton. Wearing her black hair in an unforgettable bundle on the top of her head and her fringe gelled into spikes across her forehead, the character of Lydia Deetz became instantly recognisable. Ryder subsequently appeared in several dark tales, like the black comedy Heathers and Burton’s gothic fantasy Edward Scissorhands.
Ryder has enjoyed an impressive career in the years that she became a Hollywood favourite, even experiencing a resurgence in popularity after landing a main supporting role in the hit Netflix show Stranger Things. From The Age of Innocence to Little Women, Girl, Interrupted, Black Swan, and Star Trek, Ryder has starred in many popular movies over the years.
However, not all of her experiences as an actor have been overwhelmingly positive. The sad truth about Hollywood is that it is full of terrible people – narcissists and abusers are rampant because the industry does little to prevent these kinds of people from getting away with horrible abuses of power. In some instances, filmmakers get a little too big for their boots and forget their humanity in favour of their art, even if that means treating their actors like dirt.
Francis Ford Coppola is known for being a very passionate director, sometimes getting a little too caught up in his ideas. In 1992, Ryder appeared in his film Bram Stoker’s Dracula, playing Wilhelmina ‘Mina’ Murray alongside actors like Gary Oldman, Keanu Reeves, Anthony Hopkins, Richard E Grant, and Tom Waits.
However, Ryder wasn’t the biggest fan of working with the legendary filmmaker behind The Godfather trilogy and Apocalypse Now, discussing her experience with Rolling Stone. The actor was asked about reports that Coppola directed Ryder by throwing insults at her from behind the camera. He allegedly shouted, “You whore! You fucking whore!” much to Ryder’s disgust.
She explained: “Oh, yeah, it was really great. I love being called a bitch and a whore. It’s a completely silly technique, and it does not work.” For Ryder, who was only 20 at the time, Coppola’s intense way of working was not how she preferred to be directed.
“I would never have bad-mouthed Dracula at the time. Luckily, now I don’t need to be Francis Coppola’s favourite actress to have a good career,” she continued. “Now I know I can have my opinion and still be respected. But before, I was scared, because he was just so intimidating. I thought if I spoke out, people would think I was insane”.
It seems as though Ryder had a difficult time on the set of the movie, where Coppola reportedly instructed several actors, such as Hopkins, to be rude to the young actor to prepare her for an emotional scene, but they refused. Tension on set also came from an initial falling out between Oldman and Ryder, although they claim to be friends now. However, Coppola’s encouragement for actors to get into character when they weren’t acting seemed to take its toll, with the director seemingly forgetting to treat his cast with equal respect.
