Ryder Back In The Spotlight

Actress Winona Ryder has signed up for her first lead role since being convicted on shoplifting charges.

The Hollywood beauty - who was forced to take a break from her career while on trial for stealing goods from plush Los Angeles store Saks Fifth Avenue in 2002 - is reuniting with director Michael Lehmann in independent comedy MARY WARNER.

Ryder will play a slacker actress who experiences a series of life-changing misadventures after eating a batch of marijuana-laced brownies made by her roommate.

Lehmann directed Ryder in 1989 black comedy Heathers, which is often credited as the film that transformed the aspiring actress into an A-list star.

Shooting on Mary Warner is expected to begin in Los Angeles in January (05).