AGING

Stranger Things is the latest talked-about Netflix hit series, and one of the most praised aspects of the supernatural drama is the performance of Winona Ryder. The former 1990s “it” girl stars on the series as a mother who is searching for her missing son and discovers she can communicate with him through unbelievable means. Ryder spoke to the New York Times about her role on Stranger Things, being an actress over 40 in Hollywood and “mom” roles, and what good came out of her 2001 shoplifting conviction.

Though Ryder is of the age where she is playing mothers of young children, because she does not have children herself she turns to an obvious place for guidance — her own mother. She explains, “I don’t have kids, so my mom helped me a lot on this. I’d call her sometimes and say: ‘Mom, what would you do if every indication is that your child is dead, but you believe that lights are telling you that he isn’t?’ And she’d say: ‘Honey, I’d totally believe that. It’s primal.’”

On top of that, while Ryder is determined to stay relevant, she points out that Hollywood’s age problem with actresses is a deeply-rooted issue. She says, “I love watching old movies, and I read a lot of autobiographies. Apparently Bette Davis and a lot of actresses had a hard time in their 30s, too.”