This Is How Meg Ryan Really Feels About Her Iconic Haircut

Finding inspiration in iconic haircuts from decades' past can be tricky business, mostly because what was cool in 1996 isn't all that exciting 20 years later. But there's one look we definitively remember when we talk about '90s looks that are still relevant today: The short, choppy shag Meg Ryan had in You've Got Mail. At the time, it was right up there with "The Rachel" on most-requested haircuts, and Ryan damn well knows it.

In a recently penned essay for InStyle, the actress and producer explained that she understands the effect it had on people: "I am aware that I once had a famous haircut," she wrote. "I know this mostly because I still see it on people in New York. Occasionally, it suits the person sporting it but mainly not, because it was the '90s after all, and its time has passed."

But the initial short cut — the one she debuted in the film French Kiss — was razored by celebrity hairstylist Sally Hershberger for the role and ended up as a happy accident that went on to define '90s hair trends and beyond.

"I got the famous haircut mostly by accident... I played a character stranded in Paris without luggage, money, or a place to live, so it was a stretch to think she had much opportunity to shampoo. Sally had to figure out hair that looked bad but sort of good all at once," Ryan explained. "While we were working it out during the camera test, she punctuated some remark she was making by pulling the curling iron way over her head. A sizable chunk of my hair had singed off and was still wrapped around the iron. You can’t really blame her for the iron’s overheating because of the different voltages in Europe. She was left to scissor away until we got what we got."

We hate to break it to Ryan, but with a parade of bobs leaving Hollywood this summer, we don't expect the above-the-shoulder look to go away any time soon.