Winona Ryder reveals surprising truth about her iconic '90s hairstyle

Winona Ryder was 'incredibly flattered' seeing girls using her pictures as reference at the hair salon

By Web Desk
August 21, 2025
The Stranger Things star opens up about her iconic 90s hair
The 'Stranger Things' star opens up about her iconic '90s hair 

Winona Ryder’s iconic ‘90s haircut wasn’t the work of a celebrity stylist. It was her own doing.

In a video interview with Elle UK, posted on Instagram Thursday, August 21, the Stranger Things star revealed that she cut her own hair throughout the ‘90s — including the choppy, short style she wore in the 1994 cult classic Reality Bites.

"All during the '90s I cut my own hair," Ryder, 53, said. "And I remember being incredibly surprised and flattered when my Reality Bites haircut became popular ... girls would go to the [hairdresser] and bring that picture in and I thought that was kinda cool."

The Beetlejuice alum went on to explain that her DIY approach was as low maintenance as it gets. "I mean, I literally just put my head upside down and went like that with the scissors, and I did that for any of my short hair," she admitted.

In Reality Bites, Ryder plays aspiring filmmaker Lelaina Pierce, a role that cemented her as a voice of her generation. Decades later, fans still rave about the effortless haircut that helped define the film’s grunge-era aesthetic.

Elle UK followers flooded the comments with admiration for Ryder’s honesty and style. 

"Winona could rock any hairstyle regardless!" one person wrote, while another simply summed it up: "Legend."