Skip to content

Top Navigation

PEOPLE.com PEOPLE.com
  • News
    • Coronavirus
    • Crime
    • Human Interest
    • Politics
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Country
    • Awards
    • Sports
    • Theater
    • Books
  • Coronavirus
  • Royals
  • Lifestyle
    • Style
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Health
    • Parents
    • Home
    • Real Estate
    • Pets
    • Food
    • Shopping
    • Tech
  • PeopleTV
  • Shopping
    • Coupons

Profile Menu

Join Now

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Premium
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Premium
Login
Subscribe

Explore PEOPLE.com

PEOPLE.com PEOPLE.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Every Tiara Worn at a Royal Wedding

      Every Tiara Worn at a Royal Wedding

      From Princess Beatrice to Meghan Markle Read More
    • Engineer Creates App To Translate Your Cat

      Engineer Creates App To Translate Your Cat

      Find out what your cat is trying to tell you with a new cat app Read More
    • The Sweetest Photos of Princes Harry with Diana

      The Sweetest Photos of Princes Harry with Diana

      Princess Diana died when Harry was just 12 years old Read More
  • News

    News

    See All News
    Sean Connery's Cause of Death Revealed Weeks After He Dies at Age 90

    Sean Connery's Cause of Death Revealed Weeks After He Dies at Age 90

    Sean Connery died on Oct. 31 at age 90
    • Coronavirus
    • Crime
    • Human Interest
    • Politics
  • Entertainment

    Entertainment

    See All Entertainment
    Coyote Ugly Turns 20: Where Is the Cast Now?

    Coyote Ugly Turns 20: Where Is the Cast Now?

    • Celebrity
    • TV
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Country
    • Awards
    • Sports
    • Theater
    • Books
  • Coronavirus
  • Royals
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    See All Lifestyle
    Introducing ... PEOPLE's Products Worth the Hype

    Introducing ... PEOPLE's Products Worth the Hype

    • Style
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Health
    • Parents
    • Home
    • Real Estate
    • Pets
    • Food
    • Shopping
    • Tech
  • PeopleTV
  • Shopping

    Shopping

    • Coupons

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Join Now

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Premium
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Premium
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

People is on Community!
Text us for exclusive photos and videos, royal news, and way more.
Text: 212-479-1704
LIVE
  1. People.com
  2. Movies
  3. Inside Amanda Bynes' Ups and Downs — and Her Recent Return to Rehab

Inside Amanda Bynes' Ups and Downs — and Her Recent Return to Rehab

A look back at how Bynes went from promising child star to a fall from grace
By Ale Russian and Kiran Hefa
March 01, 2019 05:09 PM
Skip gallery slides
FB Tweet

1 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Ask Amanda!

amanda-bynes-8

Amanda Bynes started her career on Nickelodeon's All That when she was just 10 years old, and became a prominent player on the kids' show, featuring in sketches like Ask Ashley.

1 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

The Amanda Show

THE AMANDA SHOW, Drake Bell, Josh Peck, Amanda Bynes, Nancy Sullivan, 1999-2002. © Nickelodeon Netwo
Credit: Everett

Bynes graduated to her own show on the same network when she was 13, gaining fame while starring in her self-titled variety show with costars Drake Bell and Josh Peck (with Nancy Sullivan).

2 of 13

3 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Big Screen Debut

BIG FAT LIAR, Frankie Muniz, Amanda Bynes, 2002. (c) Universal Pictures/ Courtesy: Everett Collectio
Credit: Everett

After ending her Nickelodeon series, the actress went on to establish her film career with movies like Big Fat Liar alongside Frankie Muniz. Her role in the hit film led her to other teen favorites like What a Girl Wants and She's the Man.

3 of 13

Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

4 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

What I Like About Amanda

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT YOU, Amanda Bynes, Jennie Garth, (Season 4), 2002-06. photo: © Warner Bros. / Cour
Credit: Everett

Bynes still kept to her TV roots while her film career blossomed, however, starring alongside Jennie Garth on the WB sitcom What I Like About You for four seasons.

4 of 13

Advertisement

5 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Last Acting Role 

EASY A, from left: Amanda Bynes, Emma Stone, 2010. ph: Adam Taylor/©Screen Gems/Courtesy Everett Col
Credit: Everett

After a string of successes in movies, Bynes declared on Twitter in June 2010 that she was leaving Hollywood behind. "Being an actress isn't as fun as it may seem," she wrote. "I know 24 is a young age to retire ... I've never written the movies and tv shows I've been a part of. I've only acted like the characters the producers or directors wanted me to play." One month later, she recanted her statement and shared a link to the trailer for her new film, the Emma Stone-led Easy A. It would be her last acting role before her legal troubles began.

5 of 13

6 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

First Arrest

Amanda Bynes Booking Photo
Credit: Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office/WireImage

On April 6, 2012, Bynes was arrested for driving under the influence after colliding with a police car in L.A. After her release, she continued getting into further accidents, holding up traffic and sideswiping a pickup truck. She was officially charged with a DUI in June and two counts of hit-and-run in September. Her driver's license was soon suspended, but Bynes again got behind the wheel, leading to further charges. When reached by PEOPLE, the actress said, "I am doing amazing … I don't drink, and I don't drink and drive. It is all false." The case was dismissed in 2014 after the actress agreed to stay out of trouble and go to counseling.

6 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

7 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Second Arrest and Drug Problems

Amanda Bynes Departs Manhattan Central Booking
Credit: Alo Ceballos/Getty

Responding to a report of a disorderly person, officers arrested Bynes (wearing a wig) at her New York City apartment on May 23, 2013, for reckless endangerment amid reports that she threw a bong out the window. The actress underwent a psychiatric evaluation before being processed at a police station, where she was also charged with marijuana possession and tampering with evidence. "It's all lies," she Tweeted days later, accusing the NYPD of sexual harassment and threatening to sue. "I think Amanda's fine," her lawyer, Richard Hutton, told PEOPLE at the time. "Every time I've talked to her, I've had nice, attorney-client normal relations with her."

7 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement

8 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Bizarre Behavior, Hospitalization and Conservatorship

Amanda Bynes Manhattan Criminal Court Appearance - July 9, 2013
Credit: Raymond Hall/FilmMagic

On July 22, 2013, the actress was hospitalized on a 72-hour involuntary psychiatric hold following a bizarre incident in which she was seen near a small fire started at the end of a driveway in Thousand Oaks, California. After a hearing at the hospital, a judge extended her stay for two more weeks, while her parents, Rick and Lynne, applied for and were granted conservatorship on the grounds that she was paranoid and a danger to herself. "Prior to moving to New York, Amanda was extremely paranoid about being 'watched,' including at our residence," her parents wrote in court papers released at the time, adding, "[She] is obsessed with the idea that she and others are 'ugly.' She talks incessantly about cosmetic surgeries that she wants to have completed ... We are concerned that the surgeries she wants to have are dangerous and detrimental to her health."

8 of 13

Advertisement

9 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Quiet Life

*EXCLUSIVE* Amanda Bynes makes a rare appearance for a hike

After her parents were granted conservatorship, the actress was relocated from the hospital where she was on psychiatric hold to a private facility where she stayed until that December. Following her release, Bynes retreated into a low-key life and disappeared off social media, resurfacing occasionally to give updates such as her enrollment in fashion school.

9 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

10 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Prepping for a Comeback

amanda-bynes

Then three years sober, Bynes did her first interview in four years in June 2017, in which she talked about her life since retreating from the public eye. The actress announced that she was ready to start acting again and addressed some of her most bizarre tweets.

10 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

11 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Big Steps

https://twitter.com/amandabynes/status/1039008555477565440Amanda Bynes/Twitter
Credit: Amanda Bynes/Twitter

As 2018 began, Bynes continued to improve, returning to social media and regaining control of her finances. "The fact that Amanda is living on her own, making her own decisions and future plans is something her parents are so proud of," her family attorney Tamar Arminak told PEOPLE. "Finally she is surrounded by friends and companions she can trust and really open up to. She feels free to be herself, which brings her so much happiness and excitement for the future. She is looking forward to graduating and the next phase of her life."

11 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement

12 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Facing Forward

amanda-bynes
Credit: Danielle Levitt

In November 2018, Bynes covered Paper magazine's annual Break the Internet issue, opening up about her tougher times. She admitted to using marijuana at 16, progressing to "doing molly and ecstasy," she said, adding, "I definitely abused Adderall."

She said seeing herself on screen in Easy A made her decide to quit acting. She started "hanging out with a seedier crowd and I isolated a lot" during her darkest moments, and "got really into my drug usage and it became a really dark, sad world for me," she shared.

Apologizing to those she hurt through her tweets in years past, she also said she was still sober. "I really feel ashamed of how those substances made me act," she said. "When I was off of them, I was completely back to normal and immediately realized what I had done — it was like an alien had literally invaded my body."

12 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Continued on next slide.
Advertisement

13 of 13

FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Back to Rehab

16th Annual Race To Erase MS Event - Arrivals
Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty

A source close to Bynes told PEOPLE in March the actress had checked into a rehab facility in January after having a "relapse." The source added the actress had been struggling again since the end of 2018 when she stepped back into the public eye and began pursuing work in Hollywood again.

13 of 13

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Ale Russian and Kiran Hefa

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 13 Ask Amanda!
    2 of 13 The Amanda Show
    3 of 13 Big Screen Debut
    4 of 13 What I Like About Amanda
    5 of 13 Last Acting Role 
    6 of 13 First Arrest
    7 of 13 Second Arrest and Drug Problems
    8 of 13 Bizarre Behavior, Hospitalization and Conservatorship
    9 of 13 Quiet Life
    10 of 13 Prepping for a Comeback
    11 of 13 Big Steps
    12 of 13 Facing Forward
    13 of 13 Back to Rehab

    Share options

    Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

    Login

    PEOPLE.com

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
    • Content Licensing
    • Sitemap
    • Student Offer this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    People is on Community!
    Text us for exclusive photos and videos, royal news, and way more.
    Text: 212-479-1704
    Newsletter Sign Up
    Other Meredith Sites

    Other Meredith Sites

    • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
    • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
    • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
    • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
    • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
    • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
    • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
    • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
    • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
    • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
    • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
    • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
    • Health this link opens in a new tab
    • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
    • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
    • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
    • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
    • More this link opens in a new tab
    • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
    • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
    • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
    • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
    • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
    • Parents this link opens in a new tab
    • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
    • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
    • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
    • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
    • Shape this link opens in a new tab
    • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
    • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
    • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
    • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
    Meredith© Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab. People is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab Manage Push Notificationsthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab

    Manage Push Notifications

    If you would like to opt out of browser push notifications, please refer to the following instructions specific to your device and browser: Google Chrome and Android, Firefox, Safari, or Microsoft Edge.
    © Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://people.com

    View image

    Inside Amanda Bynes' Ups and Downs — and Her Recent Return to Rehab
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.