Rise to Success: Career Highlights of Winona Ryder
From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Winona Ryder made an impact.
Winona Ryder is an American actress known for her quirky roles in the late 1980s and successful dramatic performances in the 1990s. She has received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe and nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and a Grammy Award. She's a significant figure in pop culture and entertainment.
1985: Videotaped audition for Desert Bloom
In 1985, Ryder sent a videotaped audition, reciting a monologue from Franny and Zooey by J. D. Salinger, to appear in the film Desert Bloom.
1986: Film debut in Lucas
In 1986, Winona Ryder made her film debut in Lucas.
1987: Starring role in Square Dance
In 1987, Winona Ryder starred in Square Dance, portraying a teenage character bridging different worlds.
1988: Starring role in Beetlejuice
In 1988, Ryder starred in the comedy Beetlejuice, which marked a rise to prominence in her career.
1988: Role in Beetlejuice and 1969
In 1988, Winona Ryder starred in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice and also appeared in 1969, a drama about the Vietnam War.
1989: Roles in Heathers, Great Balls of Fire!, and Debbie Gibson Is Pregnant video
In 1989, Ryder starred in Heathers, Great Balls of Fire!, and appeared in the music video for Mojo Nixon's "Debbie Gibson Is Pregnant with My Two-Headed Love Child".
1989: Major role in Heathers
In 1989, Winona Ryder played a major role in Heathers.
1990: Starring roles in Edward Scissorhands and Mermaids
In 1990, Ryder had major roles in Edward Scissorhands and Mermaids.
1990: Starring roles in Edward Scissorhands, Mermaids, and Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael
In 1990, Winona Ryder had starring roles in Edward Scissorhands, Mermaids, and Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael. She also received a Golden Globe nomination and ShoWest's Female Star of Tomorrow award, but withdrew from The Godfather Part III due to nervous exhaustion.
1991: Role in Night on Earth
In 1991, Winona Ryder played a young taxicab driver in Jim Jarmusch's independent film Night on Earth.
November 1992: Premiere of Bram Stoker's Dracula
In November 1992, Bram Stoker's Dracula, featuring Winona Ryder, premiered to critical and commercial success.
1992: Expressed Willingness for Beetlejuice Sequel
As early as 1992, Winona Ryder had expressed her willingness to appear in a sequel to Beetlejuice.
1992: Major part in Bram Stoker's Dracula
In 1992, Winona Ryder starred in Bram Stoker's Dracula.
October 1993: Release of The Age of Innocence
In October 1993, The Age of Innocence, co-starring Winona Ryder, was released and received critical praise.
October 1993: Release of The House of the Spirits
In October 1993, The House of the Spirits, starring Winona Ryder, was released but received poor reviews and was a box-office flop.
1993: Offered Reward for Polly Klaas's Return
In 1993, Winona Ryder offered a $200,000 reward in hopes that it would lead to the safe return of kidnapped child Polly Klaas.
1994: Dedicated Performance to Polly Klaas
In 1994, Winona Ryder dedicated her performance as Jo in the film adaptation of Little Women to the memory of Polly Klaas.
1994: Roles in Reality Bites, Little Women, and The Simpsons episode
In 1994, Winona Ryder starred in Reality Bites and Little Women, receiving her second Oscar nomination for the latter. She also made a guest appearance in The Simpsons episode "Lisa's Rival".
1995: Starring role in How to Make an American Quilt
In 1995, Winona Ryder had a starring role in How to Make an American Quilt.
1995: Starring role in How to Make an American Quilt and narration of Anne Frank's diary
In 1995, Winona Ryder starred in How to Make an American Quilt and narrated Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl, receiving a Grammy Award nomination for the narration.
1996: Film Appearances in Boys, Looking for Richard and The Crucible
In 1996, Winona Ryder appeared in several films. She starred in 'Boys', which was a box office failure and received negative reviews. She also had a role in Al Pacino's 'Looking for Richard', which had moderate critical acclaim. Furthermore, she starred in 'The Crucible', an adaptation of Arthur Miller's play about the Salem witch trials, which was a commercial failure, despite Ryder's lauded performance.
1996: Starring role in The Crucible
In 1996, Winona Ryder played a starring role in The Crucible.
1997: Starring role in Alien Resurrection
In 1997, Ryder played a starring role in Alien Resurrection.
1997: Starring in Alien Resurrection and ShoWest Award
In 1997, Winona Ryder starred in 'Alien Resurrection' as an android, alongside Sigourney Weaver. The film was moderately successful, grossing $161 million worldwide. Her performance earned her a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Best Actress. In 1997, she also received the 'Female Star of the Year' award at ShoWest.
1998: Starring role in Celebrity
In 1998, Winona Ryder had a starring role in Celebrity.
1998: Performances in The Vagina Monologues, Celebrity, and music video for Talk About the Blues
In 1998, Winona Ryder performed in Eve Ensler's play 'The Vagina Monologues' on Valentine's Day. She also starred in Woody Allen's film 'Celebrity'. Furthermore, in 1998, Ryder appeared in the music video for Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's song 'Talk About the Blues'. She was also a jury member at the Cannes Film Festival.
1999: Starring role in Girl, Interrupted
In 1999, Ryder starred in Girl, Interrupted.
April 2000: Peter J. Owens Award at the San Francisco Film Festival
In April 2000, Winona Ryder was awarded the Peter J. Owens Award at the San Francisco Film Festival.
October 6, 2000: Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
On October 6, 2000, Winona Ryder received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, recognizing her contributions to the film industry.
May 18, 2002: Hosting Saturday Night Live
On May 18, 2002, Winona Ryder hosted Saturday Night Live.
2002: Starring role in Mr. Deeds
In 2002, Winona Ryder had a starring role in Mr. Deeds.
2005: Co-producing and Co-narrating The Day My God Died
In 2005, Winona Ryder co-produced and co-narrated the documentary 'The Day My God Died' with Tim Robbins, focusing on international child sex trafficking.
2006: Return to Film with The Darwin Awards and A Scanner Darkly
In 2006, Winona Ryder returned to film with roles in 'The Darwin Awards' and 'A Scanner Darkly', marking her comeback to the industry after a hiatus.
2007: Appearances in The Ten, Sex and Death 101, and Welcome
In 2007, Winona Ryder appeared in David Wain's comedy 'The Ten', reunited with Daniel Waters for 'Sex and Death 101', starred in the short film 'Welcome', and made a cameo in the music video for Jonathan Rice's song.
2008: Roles in The Last Word, The Informers, and Star Trek
In 2008, Winona Ryder played the female lead in 'The Last Word', starred in 'The Informers', and appeared as Spock's mother in 'Star Trek', marking her return to film.
2009: Return to acting with Star Trek
In 2009, Winona Ryder returned to acting with a smaller appearance in the film Star Trek.
2009: Starring in The Private Lives of Pippa Lee
In 2009, Winona Ryder starred alongside Robin Wright and Julianne Moore in Rebecca Miller's 'The Private Lives of Pippa Lee'.
2010: Role in Black Swan and When Love Is Not Enough
In 2010, Winona Ryder appeared in Black Swan and portrayed Lois Wilson in the Hallmark television film When Love Is Not Enough.
2011: Appearance in The Dilemma
In 2011, Winona Ryder had a smaller appearance in the film The Dilemma.
2011: Roles in Black Swan, Stay Cool, When Love Is Not Enough and The Dilemma
In 2011, Winona Ryder played in Darren Aronofsky's 'Black Swan', starred in the independent film 'Stay Cool', in the television movie 'When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story' and in 'The Dilemma'.
2012: Roles in The Iceman, The Letter, and Frankenweenie
In 2012, Winona Ryder played Deborah Kuklinski in 'The Iceman', appeared in 'The Letter' and reunited with Tim Burton for 'Frankenweenie'.
November 2013: Hinted at Beetlejuice Return
In November 2013, Winona Ryder hinted at a return in a Beetlejuice sequel, provided that Burton and Keaton were involved.
2013: Appearance in Homefront and Drunk History
In 2013, Winona Ryder appeared in the action thriller 'Homefront' and in a segment of 'Drunk History' called "Boston".
2014: Turks & Caicos and Modeling for Rag & Bone
In 2014, Winona Ryder appeared in the British television film 'Turks & Caicos' and modeled for Rag & Bone's Fall advertising campaign.
2014: Appearance in 'Show Me a Hero'
In 2014, Winona Ryder appeared in the HBO miniseries Show Me a Hero. This marked her first collaboration with David Simon.
August 2015: Confirmed Reprising Role in Beetlejuice Sequel
In August 2015, Winona Ryder confirmed that she would reprise her role in the Beetlejuice sequel.
October 2015: Experimenter Release
In October 2015, 'Experimenter' was released to positive reviews. Winona Ryder starred alongside Peter Sarsgaard, playing the wife of Stanley Milgram.
July 2016: Premiere of Stranger Things Season 1
In July 2016, the first season of 'Stranger Things', in which Winona Ryder stars as Joyce Byers, premiered on Netflix to critical acclaim and high audience ratings.
2016: Advertisements for Marc Jacobs
In 2016, Winona Ryder appeared in advertisements for Marc Jacobs, both for their cosmetics and for their spring collection.
2016: Role as Joyce Byers on Stranger Things
Since 2016, Winona Ryder has played Joyce Byers on the Netflix series Stranger Things, receiving her third Golden Globe nomination for the role.
2018: Film and Commercial Appearances
In 2018, Winona Ryder starred in the film Destination Wedding alongside Keanu Reeves. That same year, she also appeared in a L'Oréal shampoo commercial and co-starred with Elizabeth Olsen in H&M's spring collection campaign.
2020: Starring role in The Plot Against America
In 2020, Winona Ryder starred in the HBO miniseries The Plot Against America.
2020: Super Bowl Commercial and HBO Series
In 2020, Winona Ryder was featured in Squarespace's Super Bowl commercial, which aired during the first half of the game. Later in 2020, she starred in 'The Plot Against America', an HBO limited series.
2021: Super Bowl Ad and Film Appearance
In 2021, Winona Ryder reprised her role as Kim Boggs in Edward Scissorhands in a Super Bowl ad for Cadillac. In the same year, she starred in the film Gone in the Night.
2023: Filming Wrapped for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
In late 2023, filming wrapped for the sequel, 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice'.
October 2024: Release of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
In October 2024, 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' was released.
2024: Starring role in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
In 2024, Winona Ryder starred in the comedy horror sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
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