WINONA RYDER - RYDER DEVASTATED AFTER MEDIA'S COLUMBINE COMPARISON

RYDER DEVASTATED AFTER MEDIA'S COLUMBINE COMPARISON

WINONA RYDER was left devastated in the days following the Columbine High School massacre - after the press used images of her brandishing a gun in cult teen thriller HEATHERS.
The actress made her name as a Hollywood A-lister after starring as a member of a high-school clique, who gets pushed into murdering her fellow students by her bad boy boyfriend - played by Christian Slater.
And Ryder recalls that when the 1988 film was released both actors received abuse from angry parents, who were adamant their children could copy the film's characters.
But the worst backlash came in 1999, after two students at Columbine High School, Colorado fatally shot 12 kids and a teacher before turning their weapons on themselves.
The U.S. press printed snaps of Ryder and Slater in the movie, aiming guns at their fellow students, alongside the story - and the actress was left shocked and dismayed by the warped comparison.
She tells Empire magazine, "We got a lot of s**t for it. When Christian (Slater) and I promoted it by speaking at schools and colleges there were so many angry people telling us how irresponsible we were.
"I remember when Columbine happened. The day after, the front cover of USA Today had a picture of me and Christian holding guns . It was so hurtful, I was as upset over Columbine as everyone else."