AMANDA BYNES: New love, new life

A DECADE AFTER STEPPING AWAY FROM THE SPOTLIGHT, THE SOBER STAR HAS FINALLY FOUND HAPPINESS

- Jennie Noonan

Amanda Bynes ended her dream career run with a tweet at 3am. “Being an actress isn’t as fun as it may seem,” the Nickelodeon TV star-turned-movie actress posted on June 19, 2010. “I don’t love acting anymore, so I’ve stopped doing it.” Although her retreat from the spotlight hasn’t all been smooth, just over a decade later all signs point to the former child star finally finding a peaceful path.

Having worked as a professional actor since she was 7 years old, Bynes – whose credits include The Amanda Show, All That and She’s the Man – dropped off the radar for two years after her retirement tweet.

She started making headlines again in 2012 for a string of car accidents, including drink-driving and multiple hit-and-run charges. In 2013, she was charged with reckless endangerment and attempted tampering with evidence for allegedly throwing a bong out of her apartment window. That same year, she also became infamous for her dramatically altered appearance as well as her erratic – and often cruel – Twitter feed.