'Stranger Things' Winona Ryder Takes on Spicy Tofu Eating Challenge... 'Jenna Ortega is like a Navy SEAL'

Sharing 'vegan' code with co-stars like Sadie Sink... Season 5 promotional spirit shone

Winona Ryder, the eternal 'Joyce Byers' from Netflix's 'Stranger Things', has plunged into the hell of spiciness. While wrapping up the epic journey of Season 5, she maintained her smile despite shedding tears during her variety show outing.

Recently, Winona Ryder appeared on the popular YouTube talk show 'Hot Ones', sitting across from host Sean Evans. 'Hot Ones' is a masochistic yet honest talk show where interviews are conducted while eating food coated with increasingly spicy sauces.

◆ Instead of chicken wings, 'tofu'... "Absorbs sauce like a sponge, making it spicier"

On this day, Ryder caught attention by choosing 'fried tofu cubes' instead of traditional chicken wings. At the beginning of the interview, she expressed her nervousness, saying, "I'm really scared. I can't believe I'm here. I usually enjoy watching this show, but doing it myself is a different matter."

A top comment on the video read, "Coating tofu with hot sauce is a really brave choice. Tofu is like a sponge that absorbs all liquids, so it will be much spicier than chicken that only has sauce on the surface," which sparked discussions. In fact, Ryder struggled during the 'death sauce' stage in the latter part, but she showed her fighting spirit by alternating bites of tofu with bites of ice cream to complete the challenge.

◆ "Jenna Ortega is like a special forces member" praise

During the interview, Ryder mentioned Jenna Ortega, with whom she shared the screen in the 2024 film 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice'.

She praised, "Jenna is like a Navy SEAL. She remains calm in any situation. I really like and respect her as a junior." In fact, the famous vegan Jenna Ortega previously appeared on 'Hot Ones' and showed a steely demeanor, not changing her expression even with spicy sauces, earning her the title of 'Queen of Spiciness'.

◆ 'Stranger Things' team's love for vegetarianism

Winona Ryder's choice of tofu also reflects the influence of her 'Stranger Things' colleagues. Sadie Sink, who plays 'Max' in the series, is also a well-known vegan. She became vegan eight years ago after being influenced by senior Woody Harrelson during a film shoot and has been vocal about how everyone should consider veganism for themselves and the environment.

Meanwhile, the fifth season of 'Stranger Things', starring Winona Ryder, premiered on Netflix globally, including in the United States, with the first four episodes (Volume 1) released on the 26th (local time). The upcoming Volume 2 will be released on Christmas, December 25, and the highly anticipated final episode will be available on New Year's Eve, December 31.