Winona Laura Horowitz born October 29 1971 known professionally as Winona Ryder is an American actress She is the recipient of several awards including a Golden Globe Award and has been nominated for two Academy Awards She is known for taking on quirky roles in her earlier films later playing more prominent roles in the 1990s After Ryders film debut in Lucas 1986 she gained attention with her performance in Tim Burtons Beetlejuice 1988 She further rose to prominence with major roles in Heathers 1989 Mermaids 1990 Edward Scissorhands 1990 and Bram Stokers Dracula 1992 She garnered critical acclaim and two consecutive Academy Award nominations for her portrayals of socialite May Welland in Martin Scorseses The Age of Innocence 1993 and Jo March in the fifth film adaptation of Little Women 1994 Her other films during this period were Reality Bites 1994 How to Make an American Quilt 1995 The Crucible 1996 Alien Resurrection 1997 Celebrity 1998 and Girl Interrupted 1999 which she also executiveproduced In 2002 Ryder starred in the critically panned box office hit Mr Deeds after which her career declined and she took a break from films In 2009 she returned in the highprofile film Star Trek In 2010 she was nominated for two Screen Actors Guild Awards as the lead actress in the television film When Love Is Not Enough The Lois Wilson Story and as part of the cast of Black Swan She also reunited with Burton for Frankenweenie 2012 She has starred as Joyce Byers in the Netflix science fiction horror series Stranger Things 2016present for which she has received Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations and in 2020 she starred in the HBO drama miniseries The Plot Against America Her relationship with Johnny Depp in the early 1990s and a 2001 arrest for shoplifting were both subjects of tabloid journalism She has been open about her personal struggles with anxiety and depression In 2000 Ryder received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame