It is no surprise that Mean Girls is one of the most popular movies created in the early 2000s. It is still popular today even though it was released 20 years ago. Mean Girls has taken the world with its popular quotes, well-known actors, and “reinventing” the color pink. Quotes like “You can’t sit with us”; “The limit does not exist”; “I’m a cool mom”; “Stop trying to make ‘fetch’ happen” — have embedded themselves in our culture” (New York Times)”
This movie created by Tina Fey went on to be made into a hit Broadway musical a few years ago. Now, exactly 20 years later, on January 12th, a remake is being released. The star of the Broadway musical was Renee Rapp. She played the lead, Regina George and gained a huge following based on her thrilling performances. Now, she is being able to play that lead role again in the new remake of Mean Girls. Tina Fey has taken on her role as Ms. Norbury again in her new film along with Tim Meadows taking on his original role of Mr. Duvall.
We all know that humor is no longer the same as it was 20 years ago, so the New York Times asked Tina Fey how she is going to update her writing skills, “I was writing in the early 2000s very much based on my experience as a teen in the late ’80s. It’s come to no one’s surprise that jokes have changed…I very much believe that you can find new ways to do jokes with less accidental shrapnel sideways” (New York Times).
Most people who went to watch this movie said that it was not what they expected. Paramount stated that they did not want to market this movie as a musical because they were scared that people would react differently (Variety). The movie leads more towards the comedy genre but songs were being sung by the characters and dance scenes were included as well.
Paramount compared their way of marketing as a way like other movies being released now, such as Wonka or The Color Purple. They are not advertised as musicals but have singing and dancing portrayed throughout the whole movie.
The new movie attracted old fans of the original film and new fans who had never seen the original before. The movie had the same storyline but was used as a way to show off the Broadway musical that was on the big stage a few years ago. The movie made over $33 million over the holiday weekend and is doing well in the theaters currently.
The new movie won’t be able to have the type of cultural impact that the original had on people and as a producer in Variety stated, “…it was trickier than trying to make fetch happen” (Variety). The new movie has a few appearances of some of the stars from the original film such as Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Seyfried, Lacey Chabert, and Daniel Franzese. Tina Fey was more than thrilled to have these actors back in action, especially Lindsay Lohan who took on a larger role in the new film. Overall, the new “Mean Girls” movie will be a hit or miss for some, but there’s only one way to find out if the movie is for you.
