Winona Ryder: A Feud with Gwyneth Paltrow?
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It's a story well known in Hollywood. Girl meets girl, girl befriends girl, girl betrays girl...and suddenly, girl hates girl.
The tale of Winona Ryder's friendship with Gwyneth Paltrow certainly seems no different from this typical narrative.
But what do we really know about the feud between Winona Ryder and Gwyneth Paltrow? And now, with Ryder's recent return to the spotlight, could the famed rift be over?
Gwyneth Paltrow and Winona Ryder: The Early Days
Circa 1997, Gwyneth Paltrow and Winona Ryder were their decade's version of Taylor Swift and Karly Kloss. In other words, they were inseparable.
But, somewhere around the time that Gwyneth Paltrow starred in Shakespeare in Love and went on to win an Oscar, a rift seemed to develop between her and Winona Ryder.
According to the Daily Mail , Winona Ryder and Gwyneth Paltrow were once young Hollywood hopefuls who shared an apartment together. They also set each other up on dates.
When Gwyneth Paltrow was dating Ben Affleck, it was she who reportedly introduced Winona Ryder to Matt Damon. Ryder and Damon went on to have a long-term relationship together.
Gwyneth Paltrow on The Shakespeare in Love Controversy
Still, it appears that when Gwyneth Paltrow starred in Shakespeare in Love, the award winning role was one that Winona Ryder had originally meant to secure. Per Us Magazine, Paltrow actually found the script at Ryder's home and thus, obtained the role for herself.
However, in an interview that Gwyneth Paltrow gave to Howard Stern in 2015, she swore to him that she did not steal the lead in Shakespeare in Love from Winona Ryder.
Gwyneth Paltrow Vents on Goop
Gwyneth Paltrow's statement was particularly noteworthy given a controversial "blind" item that she had posted in 2009 on her popular lifestyle website, Goop. Paltrow wrote,
Back in the day, I had a "frenemy" who, as it turned out, was pretty hell-bent on taking me down. This person really did what they could to hurt me. I was deeply upset, I was angry, I was all of those things you feel when you find out that someone you thought you liked was venomous and dangerous. I restrained myself from fighting back. I tried to take the high road. But one day I heard that something unfortunate and humiliating had happened to this person. And my reaction was deep relief and...happiness. There went the high road. So, why does it feel so good to hear something bad about someone you don't like? Or someone you DO like? Or someone you don't KNOW?
Winona Ryder is popularly believed to be the subject of this blind item.
Winona Ryder: Revenge?
More recently, the tabloid tale of the breakup between Gwyneth Paltrow and Winona Ryder was reignited by a report from Star indicating that Paltrow reached out to Ryder to mend the rift.
However, it appears Gwyneth Paltrow was motivated by Winona Ryder's recent comeback and as a result, her peace offering was rebuffed.
Will we ever see the two "frenemies" out and about together again? When it comes to Hollywood, never say never.
Photo credit: Andrea Raffin