Winona Ryder, a top 90s actress, who can currently be seen in Stranger Things, opened up about the struggles she faced after parting ways with Johnny Depp, whom she dated during the 90s. Back in 1989, Ryder struck a chord with Johnny Depp who was also one of the rising stars at that time. They even acted together in Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorheads. While the pair broke up in 1993 after four years of being engaged, Ryder has now opened up about the impact of the split on her life.
In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar, the actress shared the challenges and struggles she faced after parting ways with Depp. “That was my ‘Girl, Interrupted’ real life,” Ryder said referring to the 1999 film where her character is admitted in a psychiatric facility. Johnny even tattooed Winona Ryder’s name on his arm during those days. In his recent court hearing in the defamation case filed by Amber Heard, Depp told the court that he changed the “Winona Forever” tattoo to “Wino Forever” for his ex-wife.
Ryder recalled the days she was shooting for the 1994 drama The House of Spirits and said “I remember, I was playing this character who ends up getting tortured in a Chilean prison.” She added that she would look at the fake cuts and bruises on her face and then find it difficult to “see myself as this little girl.” She also admitted that she wasn’t taking care of herself.
Ryder highlighted that she got support from her 1993 film The Age of Innocence co-star Michelle Pfeiffer. Ryder said Pfeiffer assured her that the confusion with her reality would soon fade away and life would get back to normal. “I remember Michelle being like, ‘This is going to pass.’ But I couldn’t hear it,” Ryder said.
Ryder further underlined that she had never opened up about this phase of her life and that it was very private to her. After getting embroiled in a shoplifting scandal in 2001, Ryder vanished from the lime light. “I definitely retreated,” she said.
The Stranger Things actress said she was in San Francisco at that time but wasn’t being offered any work. She termed it as a “very mutual break.”
