Tragic Details About Amanda Bynes & Paul Michael's Relationship

Amanda Bynes' dramatic transformation includes a love story with Paul Michael that was anything but "What A Girl Wants." The former Nickelodeon star and her ex-fiancé had an extremely rocky romance that ended when they broke up for good around March 2023. However, that was far from the only time these two called things off.

Bynes and Michael had previously split in July 2022, just two weeks after a source told E! News they'd ended their engagement but not their relationship. "[They] are together working through the tough times," an insider claimed. Two years earlier, in March 2020, Michael announced their first breakup a mere three weeks after they confirmed their engagement. "I love her though, she's my best friend," he told In Touch, though the two appeared to be back together just one day later. However, their rollercoaster on/off status updates weren't the only tragic part of Bynes and Michael's defunct romance, as they also faced everything from potential baby loss to Bynes' family suggesting she was unable to consent to marriage.

In April 2022, Amanda Bynes made shocking claims about Paul Michael. Writing on Instagram Stories, Bynes told her followers, "Paul told me that he stopped taking his medications. I looked at his phone and he was looking at mom-and-son porn. He vandalized his mom's home. He broke all of her pictures and put salmon under her bed." She also accused her then fiancé of drug possession and added, "His behavior is alarming, and I'm afraid of what he'll do." TMZ sources revealed Michael called police to their home after he got into an argument with Bynes and she'd asked him to leave the property. The outlet reported she also called the police following the dispute.

The same day she made the allegations though, Bynes — who has quite the tragic backstory — apologized and retracted her claims. "I thought Paul relapsed, but I was wrong. He drug tested for me from a drug test kit I bought from CVS. The drug test was negative for all substances. Paul and I are staying together. I am so sorry for the confusion I caused," she said in a statement issued to E! News.

Tragically, Amanda Bynes' many ups and downs with Paul Michael reportedly took their toll on the "The Amanda Show" star. In the wake of their March 2020 split, a source told Us Weekly, "Amanda is really upset about it and not taking it well at all." They also suggested the breakup was Michael's decision, not hers, claiming, "Paul realized the relationship just couldn't go forward because of the obstacles of the conservatorship and Amanda must live at a sober living facility." However, her deep upset didn't last long, as they were seen together the day after their split hit the headlines.

Three months later in June 2020, Bynes' lawyer David Esquibias told Us Weekly she was receiving mental health treatment. "Amanda's at a treatment center for stress and anxiety. She's not there for drug or alcohol issues," he shared but didn't confirm if anything specific triggered her difficult time. A source told the outlet Michael had visited his on-again/off-again love.

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

Amanda Bynes confirmed her engagement to Paul Michael on Valentine's Day 2020 — the same month her mom, Lynn Bynes, claimed she wasn't able to make big life choices. "Lynn feels Amanda isn't in any capacity to make any decisions about her care or treatment. Lynn will request that Amanda remain in a controlled environment," a source told Us Weekly, as Bynes was under a conservatorship at the time.

That same month, Neama Rahmani, president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, explained to Us Weekly that Bynes' mom would have the final say whether the actor and her fiancée could legally wed. "As Amanda's conservator, her mother has responsibility over her daughter's decision-making, including whether or not to allow her to marry," Rahmani said. "If Amanda's parents did not consent to the marriage, they can petition the court to annul the marriage on the basis of Amanda's 'unsound mind,'" they added.

In March 2022, four months after a judge stopped Britney Spears' conservatorship when her case put the spotlight on the legal arrangement, Bynes' conservatorship ended and she began making big plans for her future. She didn't marry Michael, but the two started wearing wedding-style rings. "They wear rings now to show their loyalty to each other and as a symbol of learning and growing together," a source told Entertainment Tonight that July. "They are still together as a couple, but they have put a pause on their engagement and wedding planning."

Paul Michael accused Amanda Bynes of cheating when alluding to what caused their final breakup. Speaking to TMZ in April 2023, Michael claimed their split happened after the "She's The Man" star was MIA for three days, which sparked an argument when she got home. Michael suggested the former child star had been unfaithful and Bynes purportedly told him she wanted to end their relationship, so he left their home.

The month before, Michael had publicly accused Bynes of not taking her medication. "She got off her meds, and she's still off her meds. She's wild," he told Page Six. "She acted to shame me away," he added, claiming, "[She] lied and cheated and had too many flings the entire time." His allegations came shortly after Bynes was put under a 5150 psychiatric hold in March 2023 after she was found out in Los Angeles while nude. She was placed back under the same hold in June 2023.

Tragedy seemingly struck Amanda Bynes and Paul Michael in March 2020. The couple announced they were expecting a baby when they shared the same ultrasound photo to their Instagram accounts. Bynes wrote (via E! News), "Baby on board!" while Michael told his followers, "Baby in the making." An E! News source confirmed the couple were expecting, noting, "She's very, very early. Her parents know." 

That same day, David Esquibias shared Bynes had struggled with her mental health and was receiving treatment. "We ask for privacy during this time, and for any speculation about her personal life from the public and the media to cease so Amanda can focus on getting better," he said in a statement issued to People. Bynes and Michael quickly deleted their sonogram uploads and in May 2020, Esquibias confirmed the "Hairspray" actor was not pregnant.

In the wake of Amanda Bynes and Paul Michael's 2023 breakup and her psychiatric hold, a source told Daily Mail her family had prevented Michael from speaking to her. "They do not want her ex-fiancé around her, and he has been instructed to have no contact with her. He does not seem to have her best interests in mind and her family has nothing good to say about him," they said. The insider shared Bynes' mom and dad had been spending time with her as she focused on her well-being, noting, "She is being cooperative. They are trying to determine what caused her to have this breakdown."

Despite an apparent lack of contact, however, the "Easy A" star returned to social media after her treatment and hinted she may have wanted to get back with Michael. "Am I the only one who's trying to win back their ex through every Instagram post? Let me know if I'm the only one," she wrote on Instagram Stories in April 2024 (via E! News).