Winona Ryder has always been an electric screen presence. The twice-Oscar-nominated actor made her name in the ’80s and ’90s playing effortlessly cool, supremely stylish outsiders, but she was never one to be pigeonholed—just look at her subtle, mesmerising turn as a demure bride-to-be in The Age of Innocence. Now, three decades on, she’s cooler than ever as the tenacious and resourceful Joyce Byers in Stranger Things, the final season of which will soon be coming to Netflix.
In honor of Ryder’s 52nd birthday, we look back at her best roles to date.
Beetlejuice (1988)
At the age of 16, Ryder burst onto the scene as Lydia Deetz, a goth who befriends the ghosts (Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin) who haunt her new home, in Tim Burton’s deranged romp. To see her shimmying in the air to Harry Belafonte’s “Jump in the Line” is an utter joy.
Heathers (1988)
Few high school comedies are as delicious as Michael Lehmann’s satire about Veronica Sawyer (Ryder), a rebel who is drawn to a new student (Christian Slater) with deadly consequences. Watch it for the power-shouldered costumes and devastating one-liners.
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
With blonde locks, porcelain skin, and a wardrobe of floaty white dresses, the actor is angelic in the part of Kim beside Johnny Depp’s titular humanoid in this enchanting fairy tale from Tim Burton. Look out for the goosebump-inducing scene in which she dances in the snow.
The Age of Innocence (1993)
Martin Scorsese’s swooning Edith Wharton adaptation sees Daniel Day-Lewis play the conflicted Newland Archer with Michelle Pfeiffer as the magnetic countess Ellen Olenska and Ryder as the former’s fiancée, May Welland, radiant in bonnets and frothy ball gowns.
Reality Bites (1994)
Heralded as a cult classic by some and derided by others, Ben Stiller’s ode to the 1990s remains an acquired taste, but there’s no denying that Ryder is a delight: adorable and impeccably dressed as a videographer who has feelings for her best friend (Ethan Hawke).
Little Women (1994)
Alongside Kirsten Dunst as Amy, Claire Danes as Beth, Trini Alvarado as Meg and Christian Bale as Laurie, Ryder was the definitive Jo March of her era in Gillian Armstrong’s dreamy take on the beloved Louisa May Alcott novel. It’ll make you laugh and cry in equal measure.
Black Swan (2010)
Beth, the bleary-eyed, bitter ballerina who is pushed out of the spotlight in favor of Nina (Natalie Portman), becomes more than a tragic symbol in Darren Aronofsky’s masterful thriller when embodied by Ryder. Her despair and desperation will break your heart.
Stranger Things (2016 to present)
A whole new generation has fallen for the actor since she joined the cast of this nostalgia-laden sci-fi sensation created by the Duffer Brothers. As Joyce Byers, the resilient mother of the fragile Will (Noah Schnapp), she’s endlessly compelling.