Millennials, prepare to feel very old. You probably already do as time inexorably marches on – but any anxieties you have about losing your edge are about to be exacerbated by the first trailer for Mean Girls. “Ah!”, we hear you cry, “but the very recent movie Mean Girls already exists!” Until we point out that the seminal teen movie – in which formerly homeschooled-in-Africa kid Cady Heron moves to a regular American high school and learns some intense lessons on cliques – actually came out nearly 20 years ago, and there’s a whole kid generation who were barely even alive when it first hit the screen. So, yes, Mean Girls is back in cinematic form – except, this version is a film adaptation of the hit stage musical, bringing the Plastics into pop mode. Not that this teaser lets slip that the new version is a full-on movie musical… check it out here:
It’s a classic – but odd – marketing trick, not giving away that your film is actually a musical. And all the stranger here since that’s the key difference from the 2004 original. The music you hear here comes from Olivia Rodrigo, so don't expect 'Get Him Back' to be part of the suite in the film. Aside from the new casting, much here looks the same as the previous film – the look of Cady's school, the design of the Burn Book, and bits of dialogue seem to be identical.
There is some crossover – Tina Fey is not only behind the screenplay once again (she also wrote the stage musical) but returns on screen as teacher Ms. Norbury. But otherwise, there’s a whole new cast of youngsters. Angourie Rice, who you may know as Betty Brant in the MCU Spider-Man movies, is Cady. As for the Plastics – aka Regina, Gretchen and Karen – they’ll be played by Reneé Rapp (who was in the stage musical), Bebe Wood, and Avantika Vandanapu. Cady’s friend Janis is here played by Auli’i Cravalho (aka Moana), with Jaquel Spivey as Damian. Other notable stars include Jon Hamm as Coach Carr, The Office’s Jenna Fischer as Cady’s mum, and Tim Meadows returning as Principal Duvall.
The new Mean Girls (notably not titled Mean Girls: The Musical) is directed by Arturo Perez Jr. and Samantha Jayne, and is set to hit UK cinemas in January. Note it down in your Burn Book. And just for any avoidance of doubt: yes, it is a musical.