Lindsay Lohan: from troubled child star to a happy, pregnant wife in Dubai

Lindsay Lohan's life has been filled with ups and downs after she shot to stardom as a child. So, how did Lohan end up moving to Dubai and turning her back on Hollywood for so many years? How did she go from troubled teen to being happily married and pregnant with her first child?

Many of us fell in love with the adorable little red-headed, freckled-faced actress when she rose to the status of child stardom in the late '90s. Join us as we take a look at the ups and the many downs of her career over the years and learn about her life these days and her current projects.

Lindsay Lohan was born and raised in New York and will be 37 this year on July 2nd. Young Lindsay was thrust into the business at the young age of three when her parents signed her up at Ford Models.

By age ten, Lindsay was a regular on the soap opera 'Another World', but it was with the 1998 film 'The Parent Trap' that made Lohan a household name.

The world fell in love with her cheeky manner and adorable freckles, and little Lindsay began to work non-stop.

From 2000 onwards, Lohan appeared in various films, including 'Freaky Friday,' 'Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen,' and the film that would give her teen idol status 'Mean Girls' in 2004.

Following her role in 'Herbie: Fully Loaded' in 2005, Lindsay's life began to spin out of control. Her troubles cost her many roles, as her "good girl" status had been lost, and she was labeled troublesome and unreliable.

Some blame Lohan's parents, who have been accused of creating an unstable home environment and exploiting their daughter for their own fame and fortune.

Lindsay was constantly in the media, partying with friends such as Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton, many of whom were a bad influence on Lohan and later were quick to throw her under the bus.

Her decaying image as a "good girl" wasn't all bad, though. In May of 2007, Lindsay topped Maxim Magazine's Hot 100 list.

Lindsay, however, had adopted many bad habits such as smoking, substance abuse, and drinking far too much on a regular basis.

Young Lindsay didn't think much about consequences in her late teens and early 20s. She was reportedly known to drive under the influence.

She became more and more careless in regards to how she presented herself as well. It was not abnormal for Lindsay to appear at events intoxicated.

Shots like this of Lindsay Lohan, laughing and intoxicated became far too common in the supermarket tabloids.

On top of all her other problems, speculation also began over Lohan's mental health as well. Many of those close to her began to suspect she had developed an eating disorder. Perhaps it was the result of constantly being ridiculed.

Lindsay Lohan's self-destructive behavior was going to end badly. The starlet soon found herself with plenty of legal problems, mainly for driving under the influence and breaking her parole. Pictured is a collection of Lindsay's mugshots from 2007, 2010, 2011, 2013. In that time period, Lohan was arrested a total of six times.

Lohan's arrests and the following stints in rehab caused the paparazzi to go crazy. She found herself trying to deal with her personal issues while constantly being hounded by the press.

The result of Lohan's struggle with substance and alcohol abuse was costly. In the time period of January 2007 to 2012, Lindsay found herself in court 19 times and spent a total of 250 days in five different rehab centers.

The 2010s were very difficult for Lohan; due to her legal issues, she had lost credibility and had many restrictions on what, where, and when she could go places both for personal and professional engagements.

Despite these problems, she did manage to land some decent roles, the most notable being 'Machete' (2010), 'Liz & D i c k' (2012), and 'The Canyons' (2013).

Lindsay's love life, much like her professional life, also has been rocky to say the least. She attracted much media attention in 2008 when she began dating DJ Samantha Ronson (pictured).

Later, in 2017, she found herself being critiqued over her break-up with fiancé Egor Tarabasov(pictured), a London-based Russian millionaire. Tarabasov accused her of stealing £24,000 of his personal belongings, and Lohan accused him of abuse.

In March and April of 2014, an 8 part documentary series about Lindsay was aired on Oprah's network OWN.

Photo: Screenshot Youtube

The series documented the actress's personal and professional life as she moved to New York City to start over after rehab. The series wasn't terribly well received, as most critics found it boring and lackluster.

Photo: Screenshot Youtube

Basically, even though Lindsay did manage to find work here and there, her life had become ruined by her addictions and poor choices. In short, Lindsay Lohan was a hot mess.

The never-ending stress of being hounded by paparazzi surely helped Lindsay conclude that something in her life needed to change.

In the U.S.A, Lohan wasn't finding happiness or success. So, in 2014, the actress decided to move to Dubai, which she had previously visited in 2008 and enjoyed.

According to Esquire Middle East, in an interview on David Spade's Youtube channel in 2020, Lindsay said she has been living in the United Arab Emirates for six years. If the stars' Instagram is any indication, the change of pace seems to have done her some good.

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

One of the big motivating factors in Lohan's decision to move to Dubai was to avoid public scrutiny and find peace. In an interview with Emirate Woman, Lindsay said, "I moved here for that purpose — I don't have to be publicly seen all the time, or discuss what I'm doing."

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

She spoke with W Magazine in 2018 of how she enjoys the peacefulness that comes with not being constantly recognized, "There's a certain calmness that I find [in Dubai]. There's no paparazzi, no cameras; that's a big deal for me."

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

Lindsay found that by escaping the spotlight, she has more time to focus and to work. She told Emirate Woman, "I get more done because I don't have the scrutiny and fixation on what I'm doing every second. I work all the time; my mind never stops."

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

Indeed, she has been busy; she has appeared in the British comedy series 'Sick Note', 'The Masked Singer Australia', and made her stage debut in London in 'Speed of the Plow.'

Photo: SkyOne

Lohan has also collaborated on a jewellery design collection and has been working on her third album, and released the single, 'Back to Me,' which was well received.

In May of 2021, the actress announced her return to making films with a holiday rom-com for Netflix in which she stars opposite 'Glee' star Chord Overstreet.

According to Elle Magazine, Lohan plays a "spoiled hotel heiress" who gets amnesia due to a ski accident and falls in love with a handsome working man, in the film titled 'Falling for Christmas.' It was released on Netflix in the fall of 2022 to lukewarm reviews.

When fans spotted Lohan with a copy of the Quran on a visit to the U.S. in 2017, they went wild thinking the star had converted and become a Muslim.

In an interview with Mail Online (via The Sun), Lindsay addressed the issue, "I've studied the Quran for quite some time," and although she thinks the religion is beautiful, she isn't planning on converting anytime soon.

"It's a process to convert to anything," she stated during the interview, "It's a beautiful religion, and I am a very spiritual person... You can't just convert overnight to a religion."

In July 2022, People magazine confirmed that Lindsay had married Bader Shammas whom she had been dating for two years.

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

However, an Instagram post celebrating the couple's one year anniversary indicates that were married secretly in April of 2022.

According to Elle Magazine, Lindsay's husband Bader lives and works in Dubai. He is the Assistant Vice President at Credit Suisse, a banking firm.

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

In February 2023, Lindsay Lohan used her Instagram account to announce some surprising and exciting news. Lindsay shared a  photo of a onesie with the words 'Coming Soon' written on it.

Next to the photo, Lohan wrote a simple and direct message: "We are blessed and excited." It is accompanied by several classic pregnancy emojis: baby, bottle, white hearts... So no secrets there!

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram

The couple also contacted TMZ to confirm the pregnancy and comment on how they were "very excited for our new family member to arrive" and that they were "looking forward to this next chapter of our lives!"

Photo: @lindsaylohan / Instagram