Bynes had seemingly settled into a niche, playing light, comedic roles in broad romantic comedies. In 2005, she filmed “Love Wrecked” for Disney, but because of some wonky distribution deals, the movie wasn’t released in the United States until 2007 and only aired on the ABC Family channel. In “Love Wrecked,” Bynes played a young woman who found herself stranded on a desert island with a rock star (Chris Carmack), but who was actually lying to him about their location so she could spend time with him.
In 2006 and 2007, Bynes headlined a pair of teen updates to classic stories, which were in vogue at the time (recall: “10 Things I Hate About You,” “O,” that weird teen version of “Wuthering Heights”). “She’s the Man” was an update of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” with Bynes playing the Viola role, this time to infiltrate an all-boys school to pursue an athletic scholarship. The following year, she also starred in “Sydney White,” a modern update of “Snow White.” In two very 2007 plot points, a “hot or not” website plays a role in that film (such a website served as the entry point for Facebook.com) and the seven dwarfs were transformed into seven dorks.
Also in 2007, Bynes played the bubbly Penny Pingleton in Adam Shankman’s musical version of John Waters’ “Hairspray,” one her most visible roles yet. That film was a massive success, earning over $200 million at the box office, with Bynes supporting huge stars like John Travolta, Christopher Walken, James Marsden, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Queen Latifah.
Bynes’ final acting credit came in 2010 when, at the age of 24, she played the snotty rival to Emma Stone in “Easy A,” a modern semi-riff on “The Scarlet Letter.” Although “Easy A” was also a massive success, Bynes hasn’t appeared in any TV shows or movies since.
It seems that while her star was rising, Bynes had personal dramas of her own.
