Winona Ryder is one of the most iconic actresses of the ’80s and ’90s, starring in cult classics like ‘Beetlejuice’, ‘Heathers’, ‘Edward Scissorhands’, and ‘Reality Bites‘. She’s also one of the main reasons why ‘Stranger Things‘, the hit Netflix series which is set in the ’80s, is so authentic and accurate.
She serves as a fact-checker and a mentor on the show, apart from playing Joyce Byers, the mother of Will and Jonathan. Ryder is a living legend who brings her ’80s expertise and wisdom to the show. Here’s how Ryder helped shape ‘Stranger Things‘ with her ’80s knowledge and experience.
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Winona Ryder’s Influence On ‘Stranger Things’
One of the most important aspects of ‘Stranger Things‘ is its soundtrack, which features songs from artists like The Clash, The Police, Joy Division, and more. But not all of them were accurate for the year the show was set in. According to David Harbour, who plays Jim Hopper, Winona Ryder would often correct the Duffer Brothers, the creators of the show, when they used songs that came out later than they should have. “She’d tell them, ‘This song actually came out in ’85, and you have it in ’83,'” Harbour told Harper’s Bazaar. “She knew all of these minute, tiny details they didn’t even know, and they had to change things in the script based on that.“
Ryder’s musical expertise comes from her own passion and involvement in the ’80s music scene. She was a fan of bands like The Cure, The Smiths, and Echo & the Bunnymen. She also dated musicians like Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum and Johnny Depp of The Kids. She even appeared in music videos for Cher’s ‘The Shoop Shoop Song‘ and Jon Bon Jovi’s ‘Miracle‘.
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Mentoring The Young Actors
Another crucial aspect of ‘Stranger Things’ is its cast of young actors, who play the main characters of Eleven, Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Will, Max, and Steve. Ryder, who started her career as a teenager herself, took them under her wing and gave them advice on how to deal with fame and pressure. “I want the kids to understand, this does not happen,” Ryder told Harper’s Bazaar. “This is really unusual. And I’m always telling them, ‘The work is the reward!’ Because when I was that age, it was so hard to enjoy the fruits of my labor.“
Series creator Ross Duffer said that Ryder’s mentorship was especially helpful for Millie Bobby Brown, who plays Eleven and became a breakout star after the show’s first season. “[Winona has] talked to the kids about what celebrity is like and how the press can be and the anxiety and confusion that comes along with celebrity,” Duffer told Variety.
Ryder knows what it’s like to be a young star in Hollywood. She made her film debut in 1986 with ‘Lucas‘ and rose to fame with ‘Beetlejuice‘ in 1988. She was nominated for two Oscars before she turned 30 for ‘The Age of Innocence‘ and ‘Little Women‘. She also faced challenges such as being typecast as a goth or an outsider, dealing with anxiety and depression, and coping with a shoplifting scandal in 2001.
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