Winona Ryder had to starve herself for new movie The Private Lives of Pippa Lee - because she finds it impossible shoot emotional scenes on a full stomach.
The actress cut her food intake down to just one meal a day while she was filming, in a bid to build up enough tension to play egomaniac seductress Sandra Dulles.
And Ryder, who would only eat breakfast during the shoot, admits it was the only way for her to make her on-screen break-down appear real.
She tells Elle UK, "I try to fill up in the morning... especially with this movie, it's hard to stay really emotional on a full stomach.
"Like there has to be this weird craving that's going on if you have to cry. It's a weird thing."
The actress vowed to cheer up on movie sets - after Meryl Streep taught her how to be happy and successful.
The actress, who suffered from depression following her split from Johnny Depp, realized she could combine her acting with a contented personal life after working with Streep on 1993's The House of the Spirits.
And the experience helped her learn it wasn't necessary for actors to be moody in order to give their best performance.
"I worked with Meryl Streep on The House of the Spirits. I always thought actors had to be really depressed or moody or anguished to be great, but she was completely fine and had her family and came to work and did an amazing job and she wasn't that way.
"I remember that being a really big deal to me. And I was like, 'Wow, I can actually be happy and be good at the same time!'"
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