In 2004 we met the Mean Girls and fell in love with them, despite the Plastics being mean, for lack of a better term. Then in 2017, that movie premiered as a musical on Broadway. Now, it’s coming back to the screen in its musical form, and with an (almost) entirely new cast. From Broadway talent to Disney princesses, Mean Girls has cast a diverse and talented ensemble, and hired some legendary comedy actors to join the young performers. So, as the movie finishes production, and we get our Paramount+ subscriptions ready, let’s discuss this crew Tina Fey and co. have put together for the latest version of the early ‘00s classic.
Angourie Rice
Angourie Rice will be taking on the lead role in the Mean Girls musical, as Cady Heron, who was played by Lindsay Lohan in the movie and originated by Erika Henningsen on Broadway.
While Rice is only 22, she’s been in a wide range of projects, including the 2023 TV schedule’s The Last Thing He Told Me. You also might recognize her if you’ve seen the Marvel movies in order, as she played Betty Brant in Tom Holland’s Spider-Man trilogy. Along with these projects, she also starred alongside the Emmy-winning cast of Mare of Easttown.
Reneé Rapp
Reneé Rapp is the only person in the cast who will be reprising a role from the Broadway musical. She belted her heart out on stage as Regina George in 2018, following in the footsteps of Taylor Louderman. Now, she’ll be taking on the role of the queen of the Plastics again, playing the same character originated on screen by Rachel McAdams.
On screen Rapp is best known for her role in the Sex Lives of College Girls cast, where she plays Leighton Murray. Along with her work on Broadway and for HBO, she’s also a musician and has released multiple songs and an album, including her viral hit “Too Well.”
Auli'i Cravalho
Auli'i Cravalho has some big shoes to fill as she’s been cast as Janis Ian, Cady’s friend who tries to take down the Plastics. Janis has some massive songs in the musical, see “I’d Rather Be Me,” and they were sung brilliantly by Barrett Wilbert Weed, who originated the role on Broadway.
Cravalho will also be following up Lizzy Caplan’s performance in the movie, and, she’s more than qualified to do it. You’ll likely recognize this young actress as the voice of Moana in Moana. She made a splash with that movie, and has since gone on to work on other projects, like Amazon Prime’s The Power, where she plays an angsty teenager with big power and an attitude kind of like Janis’.
Jaquel Spivey
Playing Janis' iconic BFF and the mastermind behind the line “You go Glen Coco,” will be Jaquel Spivey. He will be following in the footsteps of Daniel Franzese (movie) and Grey Henson (Broadway) who played the hilarious Damien in their respective versions of Mean Girls.
Jaquel Spivey is relatively new on the scene, however, he made a big impact early as he starred in the Pulitzer Prize and Tony-winning musical A Strange Loop as the lead, Usher. While he’s certainly made a name for himself on stage, the Mean Girls movie will be his first feature film.
Bebe Wood
Gretchen Wieners is the inventor of “fetch,” the queen of gossip, and a self-proclaimed “disco ball,” and in this musical adaptation, she will be played by Bebe Wood, per Deadline. Gretchen was originated by Lacey Chabert in the movie, and Ashley Park on Broadway, so this young actress is joining an iconic line of performers to take on Regina George’s right-hand woman.
Bebe Wood is best known for her role as Lake in the Hulu series Love Victor. She’s also known for her voice work in the Trollhunters franchise.
Avantika
Her “name is Karen,” and she “may not be smart,” but boy is she funny. In the movie, Karen is played brilliantly by Amanda Seyfried, and and on Broadway, Kate Rockwell shows off her range and comedic chops as the character. Avantika will be the next actress stepping into the shoes of Karen, according to Deadline, the woman who cares a lot about her Halloween costume, and has “ESPN or something.”
Avantika has actually starred alongside some of her Mean Girls castmates in various projects. Both she and Angourie Rice were in the cast of Rebel Wilson’s Senior Year, and she guest starred in an episode of Sex Lives of College Girls with Reneé Rapp. She’s also starred in the TV movie Spin.
Christopher Briney
He’s the reason October 3 is Cady Heron’s favorite day, and he's the coolest boy in school, he’s Aaron Samuels. Played by Jonathan Bennett in the movie and Kyle Selig on stage, Christopher Briney is now set to play the North Shore High School heartthrob, according to Deadline.
Considering Briney plays many girls' YA crush Conrad in the cast of The Summer I Turned Pretty, this seems like a great role for the young actor. Along with the hit Amazon Prime show, Briney has also appeared in the movie Daliland and a few shorts, Mean Girls will be his first major motion picture.
Tina Fey
One of the two people reprising their roles from the original Mean Girls movie will be Tina Fey. While Kerry Butler took a turn as the math teacher (among other characters) in the musical, the writer of both the movie, the musical’s book and this musical movie will be returning as Mrs. Norbury, as she explained on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
While Tina Fey has some magnificent projects, like 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live, one of her most iconic movies is Mean Girls.
Tim Meadows
The other actor reprising their role from the original movie, as Fey announced on Meyers’ show, will be Tim Meadows as Principal Duvall. While North Shore High’s principal was played by Rick Younger in the musical, and this SNL vet will be coming back as the students’ principal for the movie musical.
Busy Philipps
In the musical movie for Mean Girls, Busy Philipps will be taking on the role of Mrs. George, per Deadline. Following in the footsteps of Amy Poehler in the movie, and Kerry Butler on Broadway, Philipps will play the iconic track suit-wearing mother of Regina George.
Recently Philipps has been playing Summer Dutkowsky in the cast of Girls5eva, which Tina Fey is an executive producer for. She’s also starred in movies including White Chicks, Made of Honor and He’s Just Not That Into You.
Jenna Fischer
The other mother of this movie, Cady’s mom Ms. Heron, will be played by Jenna Fischer, Deadline reported. Our protagonist’s mom was played by SNL alum Ana Gasteyer in the first movie, and Kerry Butler also played her on Broadway, along with Mrs. George and Ms. Norbury. Now, Fischer will step into the role.
You likely know Jenna Fischer from her time as part of The Office cast, where she played Pam. Since then she has starred in a few TV shows here and there, including Splitting Up Together, and now she co-hosts The Office re-watch podcast, Office Ladies, with Angela Kinsey.
Jon Hamm
Joining the cast in a small, yet hilarious role, will be Jon Hamm, as he’s set to play Coach Carr, per THR. The coach was played by Dwayne Hill in the movie, and he actually isn’t in the stage version, so it will be fun to see how the coach gets worked back into the story.
Hamm, who is best known for leading the Mad Men cast and being part of the Top Gun: Maverick ensemble, is a super funny dude, and I’d imagine he’ll bring the laughs, just like he did in Bridesmaids and 30 Rock.
Overall, the cast of the Mean Girls musical is stacked. Filled with up-in-coming talent as well as beloved actors from Fey’s comedy sphere, we’re definitely in for a treat when this movie-turned musical-turned movie musical hits Paramount+.
