Overview

• Ryder was initially cast in the 1990 crime comedy The Freshman opposite Marlon Brando and Matthew Broderick before TriStar revoked her offer following the Heathers screening.
• The Freshman team objected to Heathers’ dark humor around teen suicide and decided she could not appear in their film.
• Against her agent’s warning that she would “never work again,” Ryder refused to apologize for her portrayal of Veronica Sawyer.
• She confirmed that losing the Freshman role was the sole career setback she experienced because of Heathers.
• Heathers has since become a defining cult classic and remains among Ryder’s favorite performances.