1993–2005: Child acting and breakthrough

Bynes at the premiere of Robots in 2005

Bynes began professionally acting at age seven, appearing in a television advertisement for Buncha Crunch candies.^[10] During her childhood, she also appeared on stage in versions of Annie, The Secret Garden, The Music Man, and The Sound of Music.^[11] Later she attended a comedy camp at the Los Angeles Laugh Factory and was spotted by a Nickelodeon producer before being cast by the network on the sketch comedy series All That, where she played various roles from season two to season six.^[12] The show brought Bynes much recognition, and she won a Kids' Choice Award in 2000.^[13] Bynes was also a regular member of the series Figure It Out from 1997 to 1999.^[14] At the age of 13, Bynes starred in the All That spin-off comedy The Amanda Show from 1999 to 2002.^[15] She had her breakthrough on the shows earning praise and acclaim. She won four Kids' Choice Awards and received two Young Artist Award nominations.^[1]

In 2002, Bynes made her feature film debut in Big Fat Liar starring as Kaylee, best friend of co-star Frankie Muniz's character. Although the film had a mixed reception, it was a commercial success;^[16] she won a Kids' Choice Award for her performance. Also in 2002, she landed a starring role in the WB sitcom What I Like About You from 2002 to 2006 co-starring with Jennie Garth. The series garnered positive reviews and Bynes received a number of nominations from the Teen Choice Awards and the Young Artist Awards. In 2003, Bynes appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair's July 2003 edition.^[17][18] She had a voice role in the direct-to-video film Charlotte's Web 2: Wilbur's Great Adventure, which was panned by critics.^[19][20] She also had a voice role as Piper Pinwheeler in the 2005 animated film Robots, which was a commercial success.^[21][22] Also in 2005, she starred in the romantic comedy Love Wrecked.^[23]

2006–present: Mainstream film success and hiatus

Bynes in the 13th Critics' Choice Awards, where she and the cast of Hairspray (2008) won the Critics' Choice Award for Best Acting Ensemble.

Bynes was named one of Teen People's "25 Hottest Stars Under 25" in 2006.^[24] In 2006, Bynes starred in the sport comedy film She's the Man, based on William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.^[25][26] She portrays Viola Hastings, a girl who pretends to be her twin brother to play with the boys' soccer team at an elite boarding school after the girls soccer team at her school gets cut. Critic Roger Ebert wrote "Of Amanda Bynes let us say that she is sunny and plucky and somehow finds a way to play her impossible role without clearing her throat more than six or eight times. More importantly, we like her."^[27] Magazine Bustle wrote in 2018: "She's The Man was hot and hilarious and anxiety-inducing. It was perfect, and Bynes was a revelation in it."

In 2007, Bynes starred as Penny Pingleton, a sheltered young girl, in the musical comedy film Hairspray.^[28] The film was a critical and commercial success^[29][30] premiering in over 3,000 theaters,^[31] the largest debut for any musical film. It went on to become Bynes's most successful film at the time, and she and the rest of the cast were acclaimed for their performances. She won the Critics' Choice Award for Best Acting Ensemble and received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination in 2008, among others.^[32][33] She was also featured on the Hairspray soundtrack, which went on to get a Grammy nomination.^[34] It was announced Bynes would reprise her role in Hairspray 2, but the project was canceled.^[35]

In August 2007, Bynes teamed up with Steve & Barry's to create her own fashion line called Dear, consisting of apparel and accessories.^[36] The line was cut short when Steve & Barry's filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008.^[37] Bynes' next role was in another comedy, Sydney White, released in 2007.^[38][39] The film was a flop although Bynes's performance was praised. Review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes wrote "Amanda Bynes is charming, but Sydney White is a poorly adapted take on Snow White, relying on tired ethnic stereotypes laughs."^[40]

In 2008, Bynes appeared in the Lifetime Television movie Living Proof as the student assistant of Harry Connick, Jr.'s character.^[41] The film and the cast were praised.^[42] In 2009, she was set to star in the comedy Post Grad, but dropped out with no reason revealed and was replaced by Alexis Bledel amid rumors that she was having difficulties.^[43] In 2010, she co-starred alongside the then-relatively unknown Emma Stone in the comedy Easy A. She starred as Marianne Bryant, playing a popular and judgmental high-school student. The film was a critical and commercial success,^[44] with Stone and Bynes receiving critical praise for their performances. In the same year, Bynes started shooting the comedy film Hall Pass but dropped out of the film and was replaced by Alexandra Daddario.^[43][45] In July 2010, Bynes announced an indefinite hiatus from acting.^[46][47][48] In 2018, she said she might return to acting in the future.^[46][49][50]

Bynes was going to reunite with some former All That cast members at 90's Con in March 2023 – it would have been her first public appearance since the conservatorship ended – but she didn't attend.^[51][52] In December 2023, Bynes debuted as the co-host of a new interview-style podcast titled Amanda Bynes & Paul Sieminski: The Podcast.^[53] Bynes ended the podcast after one episode, saying she needed to focus on earning her manicurist license.^[54]

Mental health and substance abuse problems

In 2012, Bynes was charged with driving under the influence (DUI) in West Hollywood.^[60] Two years later, the charge was dropped, and she received a three-year probation.^[61] In May 2013, Bynes was charged with reckless endangerment and marijuana possession after she was found smoking in the lobby of her Manhattan apartment building.^[62] When officers entered her 36th-floor apartment, she allegedly threw a bong out the window.^[62] A New York County judge dismissed the case against her in June 2014.^[62]

In July 2013, Ventura County, California sheriff's deputies detained her after she allegedly started a small fire in the driveway of a stranger in Thousand Oaks. She was hospitalized under a 72-hour mental-health evaluation hold.^[63] Bynes's parents filed for conservatorship of their daughter shortly after her hospitalization began.^[64] In August, Bynes' mother was granted a temporary conservatorship over Bynes's affairs.^[65]

In October 2014, Bynes accused her father of emotional and sexual abuse in a series of tweets; after her parents protested and claimed innocence, Bynes tweeted that her father had never abused her, adding: "The microchip in my brain made me say those things but he's the one that ordered them to microchip me".^[66][67] Days later, Bynes' mother again received conservatorship of her.^[68] Soon afterward Bynes announced that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.^[69] In August 2018, paperwork was filed to continue the conservatorship until August 2020.^[70][71]

In 2018, Bynes stated she had been sober for four years with the help of her parents.^[12] She also apologized for what she said on Twitter during her years of substance abuse: "I'm really ashamed and embarrassed with the things I said. I can't turn back time but if I could, I would. And I'm so sorry to whoever I hurt and whoever I lied about because it truly eats away at me."^[12] In an interview, Bynes stated that during her days of substance abuse she experimented with cocaine and MDMA, but the drug she "abused the most" was the ADHD prescription medication Adderall.^[72]

In February 2022, Bynes filed to end her conservatorship.^[73] Her attorney stated that Bynes believed her condition was improved and protection of the court was no longer necessary.^[74] Attorneys for her parents stated that they supported her in ending it.^[75] The conservatorship was officially terminated on March 22, 2022.^[4]

On March 20, 2023, Bynes was placed on a 72-hour psychiatric hold after she flagged a bystander for help and called 911 following a psychotic episode in Los Angeles.^[76][77][78] The previous weekend she had been scheduled to appear at an All That panel at '90s Con in Connecticut, her first scheduled public event since the end of her conservatorship, but she did not appear.^[76][78] On June 17, 2023, after she called the police indicating that she had thoughts of self-harm, mental health professionals determined that she needed inpatient treatment. She left the facility on June 30 with plans for follow-up outpatient treatment.^[79]

Film

Television