Growing up, I was the biggest fan of Winona Ryder. She starred in the coolest movies — from Beetlejuice to Edward Scissorhands to the 1994 adaptation of Little Women, which I had on DVD and played so often that I memorized most of her lines.
So, it’s easy to forget that Winona wasn’t always a beloved actor. But in a new interview with Esquire UK, the 52-year-old recalled being bullied in school, both before and after Beetlejuice. She was just 15 while filming and 16 when the movie came out.
“I was very much like Lydia,” she said. “They didn’t have to do much with me. My brother found a picture of me taken like a month before that audition. I’d dyed my hair blue-black, I had these crazy short bangs, and I dressed in black.”
Despite the success of the film, the bullying only increased. “I remember thinking that it was going to, like, change my status, and it made it worse.”
She recalled, “They were like, ‘You’re a witch! You’re a freak!’ It amplified it. I was like, ‘But I’m in a movie!'”
Fortunately, it wasn’t all bad. The experience of making the movie helped Winona find herself.
The actor said she “felt like I was me” for the first time. “I wasn’t trying to be something else. That’s a huge moment, for a teenager. It really helped define me.”
Additionally, she sang the praises of her costars, Michael Keaton and Catherine O’Hara. “They always included me. They were so kind and so thoughtful. It was unique because as a kid actor you don’t always get that. It’s about the adults.”
“It truly was the first time I ever felt like I collaborated on a movie. And I really had a connection with Tim [Burton]. I remember going on to other movies and it was not like that. People weren’t so kind. It was much rougher.”
Now, she resumes her role as Lydia in the long-awaited sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, which also stars Jenna Ortega. Winona revealed that she met with Tim several times over the years and insisted the only way to “do it right” would be if she, Michael, and Catherine all returned for it.
After the sequel was confirmed, Winona was terrified. “I texted Michael and Catherine like, ‘I’m so excited, and I’m also really scared.’ And they were like, ‘So are we!'”
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice hits theaters on Sept. 6.