Amanda Bynes files to end conservatorship after almost 9 years
Could Amanda Bynes be the next star to be freed from a conservatorship?
The former Nickelodeon actress and She's the Man star has filed a petition in Ventura County Superior Court to terminate her conservatorship after almost nine years, Page Six and TMZ report.
Like Britney Spears, Bynes was placed under a conservatorship in 2013 after she was hospitalized on an involuntary psychiatric hold. Bynes, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, had allegedly started "a small fire in the driveway of some random person's house," TMZ reported at the time.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The conservatorship was set up at the request of Bynes' mother, Lynn. Amanda Bynes' attorney, David Esquibias, told told Us Weekly last year she is "doing great" and that "the goal between myself, her mother, her father, and her care providers" is for her to not need the conservatorship any longer.
"Amanda would love to be unconserved," Esquibias said. "She's expressed it over and over. The timing is not right at the moment, so she's working toward that direction. We all are working toward that direction, and one day we all hope to see it."
Esquibias now argues that time has come, telling People on Friday, "She believes her condition is improved and protection of the court is no longer necessary." The move to end the conservatorship comes after a judge last year terminated Britney Spears' conservatorship at her request after she decried it as absuive.
Bynes has had no acting credits since starring in 2010's Easy A. In 2018, she told Paper Magazine she was getting a degree at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and that she hoped to return to the entertainment industry "kind of the same way I did as a kid, which is with excitement and hope for the best." According to Page Six, a hearing in the case is scheduled for March 22.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
UK gynaecological care crisis: why thousands of women are left in pain
The Explainer Waiting times have tripled over the past decade thanks to lack of prioritisation or funding for women's health
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'The Hum': the real-life noise behind The Listeners
In The Spotlight Can some of us also hear the disturbing sound that plagues characters in the hit TV show – and where is it coming from?
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Are we any closer to identifying UFOs?
Podcast Plus, will deals with Tunisia and Kurdistan help Labour? And what next for the Wagner Group?
By The Week Staff Published
-
Quincy Jones, music icon, is dead at 91
Speed Read The legendary producer is perhaps best known as the architect behind Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
OJ Simpson, star athlete tried for murder, dead at 76
Speed Read The former football hero and murder suspect lost his battle with cancer
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Momofuku's 'Chili Crunch' trademark uproar
Speed Read The company's attempt to own the sole rights has prompted backlash
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Kevin Hart awarded Mark Twain Prize
Speed Read He is the 25th recipient of the prestigious comedy prize
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Is Downton Abbey set to return for a final film?
Speed Read Imelda Staunton reveals that a third movie may be in the pipeline
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
'Oppenheimer' sweeps Oscars with 7 wins
speed read The film won best picture, best director (Christopher Nolan) and best actor (Cillian Murphy)
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Rust' armorer convicted of manslaughter
speed read The film's cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed by actor Alec Baldwin during rehearsal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The Beatles are getting 4 intersecting biopics
Speed Read Director Sam Mendes is making four separate movies, each told from the perspective of one band member
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published