Lohan: Thespian, Not Party Girl

Fri., Jun. 9, 2006 5:05 PM PDT by Natalie Finn

Looks like we won't be getting that hugely anticipated Herbie sequel--Lindsay Lohan says she's putting the kiddie roles in her rear-view mirror, along with her party-girl image.

Continuing the quest to lose her teen queen image, the almost-20-year-old actress tells Harper's Bazaar that she considers herself all grown up and ready to focus on her career.

"People like to think that just because I'm young and like to enjoy my life, I'm some crazy party girl," Lohan says in an interview for the magazine's July issue. "I hate the term 'party girl'--I hate it. I'm in this career for the longevity of it, not just for doing everything too fast and then running out of steam."

This sit-down was the latest in a string of high-profile interviews the Mean Girls star has given this year, both to dispel the notion that she's just another starlet without aspirations that go beyond crossing every velvet rope in sight, and to clear up the usual rumors that swirl around youngsters who grow up in the spotlight--screwy parents, relationship-hopping, drug use, eating disorder, boob job, etc.

In its February issue, Vanity Fair quoted Lohan talking about dabbling in drugs and battling bulimia, but Lohan said her words were "misused and misconstrued" by the VF reporter. She elaborated on the subject in Allure's March issue, saying that she "went through a phase" of wanting to look thin and lost weight in 2004 when she was hospitalized for stress and exhaustion.

After tackling boyfriends, body image and her health, what was left to dish with Harper's Bazaar about? Well, pretty much the same thing, for the most part, but all the while maintaining her determination to be independent, self-reliant and dependent on no man, not even the cute ones from That '70s Show.

"I need to focus on my career and getting my life in order," Lohan said. "My mom married young, but it was a different time. I've heard that guys are intimidated by me even though I'm not an intimidating person. I'm honest and straightforward, and people aren't used to that."

"I've become like the guy in relationships. Lately I just cannot be in a monogamous relationship. But there are people I want to date."

Congratulations, Ms. Lohan, you're living in the right town.

As for her upcoming appearances on the big screen, Lohan is thinking less Freaky Friday and more Meryl Streep. In fact, she currently appears alongside the Oscar winner in Robert Altman's latest, A Prairie Home Companion, which opened Friday. Next up is Chapter 27, an indie film about John Lennon's killer, Mark David Chapman. Lohan appears in that one with her pal Jared Leto.

"I don't need to do any more kid movies," she said. "The word 'kid' makes you feel like a child. Someone I dated called me 'kid' all the time. I hated that."