After some prodding, Ryder revealed the role was for The Freshman, the 1990 crime comedy that also starred Matthew Broderick<\/a>, as a naive film school student who accepts a job with Brando’s mobster. Ryder said she already landed the role \u2014 then, the filmmakers saw Heathers. “They thought it was making fun of teen suicide,” she said. “They were deeply offended and, yeah, they revoked the offer.”<\/p>\n TriStar Pictures\/courtesy Everett Collection<\/p>\n Marlon Brando and Matthew Broderick in ‘The Freshman’<\/p>\n “I\u2019m like, \u201cI can\u2019t work with Marlon Brando?\u201d Ryder recalled, adding that she stood firmly by her work. “I had to stand my ground. I wasn\u2019t gonna apologize.”<\/p>\n The dark comedy centered on Ryder’s Veronica, who is part of a clique of popular mean girls \u2014 all named Heather \u2014 at her high school, though she does not approve of their cruel behavior towards others. Veronica discovers that her new boyfriend, J.D. (Christian Slater<\/a>), is intentionally killing students he doesn’t like, including clique leader Heather Chandler (Kim Walker), who was not-so-accidentally poisoned; her death was staged to appear as a suicide. The late Shannen Doherty<\/a> also starred as new clique leader Heather Duke.<\/p>\n Mike Marsland\/WireImage<\/p>\n Winona Ryder at a London photocall for ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ in August 2024<\/p>\n Want more movie news? Sign up for\u00a0Entertainment Weekly<\/a>‘s\u00a0free newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.<\/p>\n Ryder revealed last year, in a video interview for Harper’s Bazaar alongside her Beetlejuice Beetlejuice costar Jenna Ortega<\/a>, that her agent implored her not to do the film<\/a>. “My agent at the time literally got down on her knees,” she said. “She\u2019s like, \u2018Please, you\u2019re gonna destroy any chance of a career.'” And yet, “I think I made the right call,” Ryder said.<\/p>\n In a retrospective for the film’s 30th anniversary in 2019, producer Denise Di Novi told Variety “everybody thought we were crazy<\/a> to make the movie.\u201d She also praised Ryder for not taking the advice of her agent, calling the actress “so smart, very brave and unusual.” Di Novi added, “She was this amazing 15-year-old, if you can believe it. Winona got obsessed with the script.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"TriStar](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/33b58af3b5304135066b1e9964049357.jpeg\"\/)
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