How Lindsay Lohan Built a ‘Safe Life’ With Her Family After Years of Self-Destruction

Lindsay Lohan looked like a Disney princess while posing on the red carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of her new film Freakier Friday July 22. Dressed in a pale pink custom Miu Miu dress and adorned with dazzling Lorraine Schwartz diamond jewelry, she oozed Hollywood glamour. “Wrapped in blush and a little bit of stardust,” the actress wrote on Instagram alongside photos from the big night.

The radiant 39-year-old bears little resemblance to the troubled young adult who was in and out of jail and rehab in the late 2000s and often spotted partying with the likes of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Since moving to Dubai in 2014, Lindsay — who wed financier Bader Shammas in 2022 and welcomed her first child, son Luai, in July 2023 — has left her wild-child days behind. Now, she’s starring in her first feature film since 2007 and has the lead role in the upcoming Hulu series Count My Lies (she’s also producing). She’s traded drug – and alcohol -fueled all-nighters for quiet evenings at home with her family. “Looking back, Lindsay can say she made some really bad choices, but she’s learned from them,” a source tells Star. “Leaving Hollywood was the best decision she ever made.”

Downward Spiral

For a long time, it was home. The Long Island, N.Y., native began acting at 10 and landed her first major film role in the 1998 hit The Parent Trap. In the mid-2000s she ruled the box office with flicks like the original Freaky Friday, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen and Mean Girls. But her private life was a mess — her parents, Michael and Dina, split in 2005 and their nasty divorce played out publicly. “Lindsay didn’t have a very stable upbringing,” says the source. “She’s not pointing fingers, but the lack of parental guidance definitely contributed to her troubles.”

She became a fixture on the Hollywood party scene. In 2007, she completed two of five eventual stints in rehab and was arrested twice for drunk driving (during her second arrest she was charged with possession of cocaine and driving with a suspended license). She appeared in court 20 times and spent 14 days in jail in 2010 for her 2007 DUI (her three-month sentence was shortened due to overcrowding) and was put on house arrest for 35 days in 2011 after she was charged with felony grand theft for stealing a $2,500 necklace. “Lindsay was impulsive and defiant,” says the source. “She lived very fast and lost sight of herself.”

New Normal

Bader, also 39, has been a stabilizing force. “[He’s] a very calm person,” Lindsay told Cosmopolitan in 2022, two years after they were first linked. Says the source: “Bader has provided her with the love and stability she always wanted and needed.”

Her life now couldn’t look more different. (Her appearance has also changed: In late 2024, her glow up went viral, sparking rumors of plastic surgery; she credits self-care.) Her morning routine consists of writing in her journal, sipping green tea, having breakfast with Luai and doing Pilates. Her idea of fun has also changed. As she explained to Allure, “I really love structure because I don’t think I had that when I was young.” Once hounded by paparazzi, she’s found privacy living near the beach with Bader and Luai. “She’s built a cozy, snug, safe life,” says the source.

What’s Next

Her career resurgence, kicked off by three Netflix rom-coms including the 2024 holiday film Our Little Secret, has come at a great time. “She was glad to get back to work,” says the source. Making Freakier Friday with costar and close friend Jamie Lee Curtis “was surreal” for the former child star, adds the source. “So much has happened since they made the first one.” She’s eager to stretch her limits, telling Elle she’d like to do a dark comedy like Mean Girls and work with “dream directors” like Quentin Tarantino. She’s also developing a skincare line.

As her career catches steam, her husband and son remain at the center of everything. Lindsay’s already thinking about baby No. 2, telling Elle she wants Luai to have a sibling. “He needs a friend.” Adds the source: “Lindsay doesn’t worry too much about how she’ll juggle being a mom of two with her schedule. She’ll make it work. Her family is her top priority.”