Lindsanity? Lindsay Lohan Poised for 'SNL' Comeback

March 3, 2012— -- Lindsay Lohan needs "Saturday Night Live" to do for her what the New York Knicks have done for Jeremy Lin.

Playing on the "Linsanity" phenomenon, "SNL" regular Kennan Thompson jokes in a promo for tonight's show as Lohan begs him not to: "Oh, no, you know what that means? It's time for Lindsanity!"

As tonight's host, Lohan must be hoping so. The 25-year-old starlet has been on the road to redemption.

Thursday morning, she spoke of past regrets to "Today" host Matt Lauer.

"I regret the choices that I've made, but I'm grateful for where I am today, because of them," she said. "I don't need to see any more negative stuff. I don't need to put myself in those places any more."

Thursday night on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," she revealed how she pursued "SNL" producer Lorne Michaels, until he agreed to let her host.

"I was calling Lorne -- I kept asking him -- not harassing him, but I wasn't giving up, saying 'Can I host? Can I host?'" she told Fallon. "He was in L.A. and you know Lorne, he's very straight to the point. He was like 'What about March 3?' I'm like, 'I'm free!'"

Lohan realizes how much tonight will be a test for her. "People can say things all they want, but I think I still need to go through the process of proving myself with 'SNL,' being on time, being, you know, keeping my -- can't say the word -- but stuff together," she told Lauer

She's even ready to poke fun at herself.

Her rep told ABCNews.com that the "Mean Girls" star has "been having a great week, and loves working with the cast, writers and crew at 'SNL.' Saturday's show is shaping up incredibly well and Lindsay is going to knock it out of the park."

For Lohan, hosting "Saturday Night Live" is almost like coming home. It's her fourth time hosting the show, though it's been six years since the last time.

The show has always welcomed Lohan on its stage, and even tried to get her help when she first showed signs of being in trouble.

According to a 2006 Vanity Fair article, Lorne Michaels and Tina Fey, then the show's head writer, staged an intervention, telling Lohan about their experiences with John Belushi and Chris Farley, who both died of drug overdoses.

"They sat me down, literally before I was going to do the show," Lohan told the magazine. "And they said, 'You need to take care of yourself. We care about you too much, and we've seen too many people do this,' and I just started bawling. I knew I had a problem and I couldn't admit it."

Six years later, Lohan finally seems to be turning her life around.

In January, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Stephanie Sautner praised the actress for completing all her required community service on time, saying "Keep doing what you're doing. You appear to be doing very well."

On Feb. 22, Judge Sautner told her she seemed to be getting her life "back on track," The Associated Press reported.

Lohan remains on informal probation for taking a $2,500 gold necklace from a Venice, Calif., jeweler without permission in January 2011.

She's also got her first starring role since 2007's box office flop "I Know Who Killed Me."

Lohan is lined up to play the late Elizabeth Taylor in the Lifetime movie "Liz and Dick," about Taylor's romance with Richard Burton.

Lohan lamented the critics that don't think she's capable of a comeback.

"If I harped on that and only focused on the negative and the people that doubted me, then I might be right back where they think I'll be," she told Lauer, adding that she's become a homebody. "But that's not what I want for me … I don't want to go back to that place. I want to move forward with my life … I want to keep growing, and I want to keep growing in the right ways."

Where would she like to be in five years?

"Hopefully I'll have just come from the Oscars this past weekend," she told "Today." "I want to get back to acting."