Tina Fey on How She Made Lindsay Lohan's Cameo Happen in 'Mean Girls'
Tina Fey knew how appealing it would be if someone special appeared in the new Mean Girls movie musical.
Warning: Spoilers below for the 2024 Mean Girls movie.
“Paramount said, 'Can you get one of the original ladies? And I thought, 'I can't fit five people in there,'” Fey, 53, said Entertainment weekly in an interview on Friday, January 12. “I felt like if I could just get one person as a surprise, it really was the original movie Lindsay [Lohan’s] movie. As great as they all are, she is the heart of the film.”
Fey, who wrote both the original and new versions of the film, explained that she was also tasked with figuring out how Lohan, 37, could fit seamlessly into the story. “I thought, 'What can she do?'” she recalls. 'I didn't think so [she should] play a teacher. I tried to think of something you wouldn't expect.”
Ultimately, Fey figured out how to integrate the original Cady Heron in a way that would feel special to fans. Lohan appears in the film's third act as a moderator during the Mathletes competition, which includes the new Cady, played by Angourie Rice.
The musical film adaptation of MEAN GIRLS is officially here and creator Tina Fey is ready to bring even more pink to the big screen. “I am very excited to bring Mean Girls back to the big screen,” Fey said in a statement to Playbill in January 2020. “It was incredibly satisfying to see how […]
“Just to have her do that late in the movie, it also feels like it comes, I hope, at a time where fans weren't expecting a little surprise anymore,” Fey said. “It also lets her be smart, which Cady is.”
Lohan can't step into Cady's shoes, but her role in the 2024 film allows her to be in the room for one of the character's most famous lines: “The limit doesn't exist.”
Tina Fey, Lindsay Lohan.
Cover imagesIn the scene, Lohan asks the mathematicians tough questions as Fey, who reprized her role as Mrs. Norbury, looks on proudly. The film then breaks the fourth wall somewhat, with Lohan mentioning that the competition has only ended in a draw “once before”, a nod to the same scene from the 2004 film. However, when Cady (Rice) asks why they don't paid more attention during limit class, Lohan cheekily replies, “Honey, I don't know your life.”
“I was so nervous to meet her. My stomach was hurting,” Rice, 23, told EW of the crossover moment between her and Lohan. “But it was so exciting because I love her performance Mean girls. I think she brings such an honesty to her performances and it's just so special. And so it was crazy to meet her.”
Rice's fears proved unfounded, as she said the pair immediately bonded over playing the same character. “One of the first things she said to me was, 'I feel like I know you because I played the same character,' and that meant so much to me,” Rice said. “It just felt so special because it's really rare to play the same character as someone and meet them. It's something I've never experienced before.”
The new installment of the teen comedy classic was initially greenlit in 2020 and served as an adaptation of the Mean girls Broadway musical, also written by Fey and premiered on stage in 2018. In addition to Rice as Cady, Renee Rap – who also appeared in the stage version – plays Regina George, while Avantika Vandanapu And Bebe Wood complete The Plastics as Gretchen Wieners and Karen Smith, respectively. Christopher Briney takes on the role of Aaron Samuels, Auli'i Cravalho is Janis 'Imi'ike (formerly Ian) and Jaquel Spivey portrays Damian Hubbard.
Mean Girls debuted in theaters on April 30, 2004, but the teen movie is celebrated annually on October 3, thanks to one of the film's most memorable scenes. The film is responsible for creating iconic lines, including: “On Wednesdays we wear pink” and “Is butter a carbohydrate?” But when Aaron Samuels (Jonathan Bennett) was innocent […]
As for the original cast: three-quarters of The Plastics, Lohan, Lacey Chabert And Amanda Seyfriedrecently reunited for one Mean girls-inspired Walmart ad in December 2023, reprising their characters. Lohan also made a surprise appearance on the red carpet during the Mean girls premiered in New York City earlier this month.
“It has stood the test of time,” she said Entertainment tonight from the OG movie while walking the red carpet. “I feel really grateful. I mean, it's not often that you have all these movies that do that. Mean girls has really opened the doors to a lot of things happening in schools. I also think it's a really nice movie, so it's really a blessing.”
Mean girls now playing in theaters.