Friends: The True Story Behind Winona Ryder’s Cameo
Winona Ryder made a memorable cameo on the hit sitcom Friends, with the true story of her appearance coming at a notable time in her career. Perhaps best known for her cult classic roles in the 1980s and Oscar-nominated performance in 1994’s Little Women, Winona Ryder was established as one of the most bankable actresses in Hollywood long before taking a leading role on Netflix’s Stranger Things. Ryder was even referenced on Friends as one of the celebrities on Ross’ “freebies” list four seasons before her cameo, highlighting her popularity.
Friends became a hit right off the bat in the 1990s, which meant the series had the opportunity to bring on some of the most popular stars of the era. In just the first few seasons, Friends featured cameos from massive celebrities like George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Brooke Shields. Even further down the line, Friends was able to do more significant stunt casting with actors like Bruce Willis, Susan Sarandon, Reese Witherspoon, Danny DeVito, Brad Pitt, and, of course, Winona Ryder. While celebrity cameos in sitcoms were nothing new at the time, Friends was notable for the amount of screentime given to their guests, resulting in numerous memorable characters.
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Winona Ryder cameoed in the Friends season 7 episode “The One with Rachel’s Big Kiss” as Melissa Warburton, Rachel’s sorority sister from college with whom she shared a drunken kiss. The majority of Ryder’s cameo sees Rachel desperately trying to prove to Phoebe that the kiss actually happened, with Melissa finally admitting to the incident when Jennifer Aniston’s Rachel kisses her again. The kiss, which was a major stunt for Friends’
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