Mean Girls

Mean Girls is a 2004 American teen comedy film directed by Mark Waters, written by Tina Fey, and starring Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, Lacey Chabert, Amanda Seyfried (in her film acting debut), Tim Meadows, Ana Gasteyer, Amy Poehler and Fey. The supporting cast includes Lizzy Caplan, Jonathan Bennett, Daniel Franzese and Neil Flynn. The screenplay is based in part on Rosalind Wiseman's 2002 book Queen Bees and Wannabes, which describes female high school social cliques, school bullying and the damaging effect they can have on teenagers. Fey also drew from her own experience at Upper Darby High School as an inspiration for some of the concepts in the film. The plot centers on naïve teenage girl Cady Heron (Lohan) navigating her way through the social hierarchy of a modern American high school after years' homeschooling by her parents while they conducted research in Africa. Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels produced the film. Fey was a long-term cast member and writer for Saturday Night Live. Filming took place from September to November 2003. Although set in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, Illinois, the film was mostly shot in Toronto, Canada. It marks Lohan's second collaboration with director Waters, the first being Freaky Friday (2003). Released on April 30, 2004, Mean Girls grossed $130.1 million worldwide and has become a cult classic. Critics praised Waters' direction, Fey's screenplay, its humor and the performances; especially lauded was Lohan's acting, which earned several accolades including three Teen Choice Awards and three MTV Movie Awards, and in 2021, was listed as the eleventh-best performance of the 21st century by The New Yorker. The made-for-TV sequel Mean Girls 2, premiered on ABC Family on January 23, 2011. A musical premiered on Broadway in March 2018 and the film adaptation of the musical is set to be released on January 12, 2024. Plot