Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time.
As in: Hiring Lindsay Lohan, the pretty teen star of recent Disney remakes like “The Parent Trap” and “Freaky Friday,” to headline in yet another redo of a Mouse House classic, “The Love Bug.” But — over these past few months — it’s been anything but a lovefest between Mickey & Lindsay.
To put it bluntly, Ms. Lohan’s after-hour antics have been driving Disney’s PR staff crazy. Lindsay has reportedly been partying so heartily that it’s begun to negatively impact her performance in “Herbie: Fully Loaded.”
That’s why Hollywood’s rumor mill really kicked into overdrive back on October 21st, when Lohan was suddenly hospitalized with a mysterious illness. Production of the “Love Bug” remake shut down entirely while doctors at LA’s Cedar Sinai Medical Facility hovered around her bedside and tried to figure out what exactly was ailing Lindsay.
Press reports mentioned a 103-degree temperature as well as tests for meningitis. Off-the-record, people of the starlet suggested that Lohan had been hospitalized because she’d been burning the candle at both ends as well as in the middle.
Said one friend of Lindsay:
Look, everyone behaves like an idiot when they’re 18. They party too hearty, they drive too fast, they drink too much. That’s all part of the kid-becoming-an-adult rite of passage.
But Lindsay? She gets to do her rite of passage right on the front page of every tabloid in North America. Where people feel free to gossip about whether or not she’s had a boob job or say, whether or not she’s feuding with Hilary Duff.
Obviously, this is a really rough way to spent your late teens. Not to mention that Lindsay’s Dad, Michael Lohan, seems to be in the tabs almost as Lindsay is. So no wonder Lindsay’s been kind of freaking out lately.
Speaking of freaking out … Disney studio execs were really freaking out while Lohan was in Cedar Sinai. Wondering if they’d actually have to shut down production of their “Love Bug” remake and recast Lindsay’s role. But happily Lohan came out of the hospital and got right back to work on “Herbie: Fully Loaded,” which is now expected to complete principal photography sometime later this month.
Once work on this “Love Bug” remake, Lindsay — without taking a break — jumps right into her next film project. “Lady Luck,” a comedy for Fox about the luckiest girl in the world who suddenly has a run of bad luck. (Sound familiar?)
In addition to shooting this new film for Fox, Lohan will also spend the next few weeks getting ready for the debut of her first album. This as-yet-untitled recording will be released by Casablanca Records come December.
As for the Walt Disney Company … Even though Lindsay’s movies have made over $200 million for Mickey to date (I.E. 1998’s The Parent Trap $66 million, 2003’s “Freaky Friday” $110 million & 2004’s “Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen” $29 million), Mouse House execs are now saying that it will be a cold day in Burbank before the Disney Corporation ever hires Ms. Lohan again to appear in one of the studio’s movies.
Unless — of course — “Herbie: Fully Loaded” makes a buttload of money when this big budget remake finally rolls into theaters next June. If that’s what actually happens here, you can bet that the Mouse will forgive any and all of Lindsay’s foibles. Just as long as Ms. Lohan then agrees to sign on for a “Herbie” sequel.
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