Winona Ryder - "Heathers" Interview

every line is my favorite line Swatch dogs and diet coke heads I mean I I know the movie by heart I had actually just gone through something where a girl had committed suicide who was uh you know called everything from a freak a witch you know just a girl who dressed differently and who was um kind of goth and she committed suicide in my school and then as soon as she committed suicide everybody was talking about how great she was and saying that they were friends and her funeral was huge and was like and then I got the script and you know it just really struck me because I was so disgusted with the behavior of my school it's one of the very very few movies that teenagers can watch and be blown away by and not be completely insulted a lot of people some very creepy some great think that movie saved them in high school and I stand for all the losers and the Nerds what kids do to each other in high school is as bad as what adults do to each other in war and divorce your high school scars are way deeper than your divorce scars or your Vietnam scars there are a lot of really smart kids out there who don't want to be insulted by John Hughes not that I don't like The Breakfast Club or anything like that it's a brilliant piece of literature and I mean I call it literature because it really is I I held it up next to catcher in the Ryan and all the great books that I've read I think originally they had another actress in mind I got Dan Waters and Michael Layman's phone numbers and I literally started stalking them I think a lot of actors were really scared of the material I remember a specific incident that will stay with me forever where my agent at the time who I left shortly after this happened got down on her hands and knees and begged me not to do Heather's she said that it would ruin my career and I would never work again a lot of guys came in and read for for the part and I remember the scene that they read was the scene where I'm fake hanging and they come in and they do the whole monologue to me so for like two weeks I had to stand on this chair and like pretend I'm hanging and the actors would do the speech they were some of them were just so like just didn't get the comedy of it we're really just being very dramatic about it and Christian just came in he was so perfect I couldn't wait to get to work in the morning I never wanted the day to end we were left completely alone as far as I know by the studio because it was like no money and I don't think anyone ever thought this movie was no anyone who was going to see this movie so it wasn't like the studio was there every day going you know hurry up I can't even discuss Tech cow tipping because to tip cat it's insane the prop guys were below camera and they had to throw the mud at us to not laugh I remember turning the corner of my mouth down I mean I was if you watch the scene closely I am like going [Music] my favorite is well not my favorite but I have so many favorite moments is when I'm walking up the hill and I'm wiping the mud off and I see JD standing there and you see Heather McNamara being date raped in the field like it's so subversive and sick her journal entries are so hilarious and and sad and tragic and funny and Brilliant I sometimes wondered what if they got cut out after we did the movie and I was so glad they didn't because they really showed the turmoil that she was going through the original ending was the bomb was strapped to me and I give this amazing speech on the steps of the school and the camera moves in on my face and then it cuts to Black and you hear my voice go boom but I do love the ending as it is I love that he lights my cigarette with his exploding his body I remember dancing I remember crying I remember being really happy and really sad there was so many people who were like why is it called Heather's I'm like how can you ask that question it's such a great title lethal attraction and I think it was actually released as that in Europe I don't know how Satan or devil worshipers got into this mix but that's what we recall for a long time I was going to do a movie after Heather's and I got fired because the director saw Heathers and say didn't want to work with anyone associated with the movie I don't think of it as a movie that I was in a lot I just think of it as a great film and if I wasn't in it it would still be my favorite film I get asked about that more than anything else I don't know who'd be up for it I certainly would be I have to go call Dan right now [Music]

Channel: [WF]

Views: 21,926

Keywords: Heathers, Winona Ryder, Interview, Michael Lehmann, Christian Slater

Id: plg_gLGqGzs

Length: 5min 38sec (338 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 15 2023