JEFF PEARLMAN

JEFF PEARLMAN

Amanda Bynes

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Was walking past the newsstand today when a plastic-wrapped magazine caught my eye. It was Maxim—with a cover featuring Amanda Bynes.

Glub.

I understand Maxim going after a certain genre of celebrity—Brit, Aguilera, Cuthbert, Tiger Woods’ lady friends, Pink … so on and so on. But Amanda Bynes, queen of Disney-esque family films for the whole ages? Why, dammit? Why?

More important, if you’re Bynes—why, dammit, why? Clearly, she’s worried about her career falling apart, and probably with good reason. Generally speaking, cute teenagers with mediocre acting chops don’t do so well in adulthood. It was OK watching Amanda Bynes as a college freshman trying to survive or as a girl disguised as a boy soccer player. But, at age 23, where does she possibly go from here? Too old for Disney, too lacking for real cinematic roles … what’s an adult actress to do to survive?

Answer, I suppose: Maxim.

Sigh.