The Anniversary Brothers Podcast: Mean Girls 20th Anniversary

Aaron and Josh Sarnecky are here to talk about Mean Girls for its 20th anniversary. Joining them as special guest is Aaron’s friend and Lindsey Lohan stan Stefan Thomas. Mean Girls is a teen comedy directed by Mark Waters and written by Tina Fey. It is based on the self-help book Queen Bees and Wannabes by Rosalind Wiseman. The film opened in theaters on April 30, 2004. The movie follows high schooler Cady Heron (Lindsay Lohan) as she tries to fit in after years of homeschooling abroad. Cady starts hanging out with the Plastics, a clique of popular, stuck-up girls. The group consists of Gretchen Wieners (Lacey Chabert), Karen Smith (Amanda Seyfried), and leader Regina George (Rachel McAdams). Cady agrees to help her friend Janis (Lizzy Caplan) get revenge on Regina so Cady can go out with Regina’s boyfriend Aaron (Jonathan Bennett). Other characters include Janis and Cady’s friend Damian (Daniel Franzese), math teacher Ms. Norbury (Tina Fey), principal Mr. Duvall (Tim Meadows), and Mrs. George (Amy Poehler). Upon release, Mean Girls garnered praise for its humor and cast. It grossed $130 million on a budget of only $17 million. It went on to become a cultural phenomenon, generating catchphrases, fads, and homages. It also led to a made-for-TV sequel and Broadway musical which got its own film adaptation. Aaron, Josh, and Stefan talk about their histories with Mean Girls before going into the plot, performances, and humor. They also discuss its legacy and the possibility of a proper sequel. For more comedies, you can listen to Aaron and Josh’s retrospective on Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail. Mean Girls is streaming on Paramount+