Glenn Close is the personification of the method actress: to prepare for her role as everyone’s favorite bunny-boiling baddie Alex Forrest, she took the script to several different psychologists, consulting them on whether the behavior described was possible, and why. Glenn, who portrayed a woman who refuses to end a one-night-stand affair with a married man, was the undisputed star of the picture, and  Fatal Attraction was acclaimed by critics and viewers alike.

On this day, September 11, in 1987 Fatal Attraction opened. The psychological drama garnered six Academy Award nominations.

In the film’s iconic scene, Close’s Alex kills a pet rabbit belonging to daughter of Dan Gallagher, the object of her obsession. She then places it in a pot on the stove. In the UK, that scene spawned the term “bunny-boiler,” referring to former romantic partners who turn stalkers.