Winona Ryder explains why she disappeared from Hollywood: 'I don't have any interest in being a movie star'

With the release of Netflix's "Stranger Things," there has been a lot of talk about 1990s icon Winona Ryder making a comeback.

People are obsessed with revivals (see: "Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life" and "Fuller House"), and there's nothing like seeing an old favorite rise out of the ashes Britney Spears-style.

Except in looking at Ryder's IMDb credits, it wouldn't appear that the "Beetlejuice" and "Heathers" actress has really been absent. Since her debut in 1986's "Lucas," Ryder has been involved in a project every year except 2003 and 2005.

Of course, the projects aren't on the level of her '90s films like "Girl, Interrupted," "Bram Stoker's Dracula," and "Edward Scissorhands." Instead, they're lesser-known titles like "The Dilemma" and "The Iceman" or small roles in big films like "Star Trek" and "Black Swan."

But in a 2014 interview with The Guardian, Ryder said she's just fine with not being a major name.

"There's a big part of me that just wants to do good work and not have that pressure,"Ryder said. "I don't have any interest in being a movie star."

She admitted to struggling to find the right transition to adult roles. She eventually moved to San Francisco for her "hiatus" to explore interests beyond acting.

"Fame can be incredibly isolating," Ryder told The Guardian. "Dangerously so. And I've definitely gone through that. There was a time when I would go for a hike and I wouldn't even know that I was being photographed."

Even though she needed to get out, Ryder acknowledges that her time off sealed her off in a '90s time capsule that only recently opened thanks to her role as Joyce Byers in "Stranger Things," which Tech Insider's Tim Mulkerin dubbed one of the best things he's seen all year.

"I took some years off, and I didn't realize that was very dangerous in terms of my career," she told Time in a recent interview. "I was constantly being told, 'You have to keep working so you stay relevant.' When I was ready to come back, I was like, 'Oh, where did everyone go?' A lot of actors have ups and downs. I think mine were - people might see them as awful - but I learned, and I appreciated the time away."