This past April, Mean Girls celebrated its 16th anniversary. It's hard to imagine the movie being the same age as its main characters. Alas, in the nearly 20 years since the teen comedy came to theaters, the cult classic — written by Tina Fey and starring Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams — has been quoted regularly by people everywhere, elevated the careers of many of its stars, and inspired a direct-to-video sequel and a musical adaptation, which premiered on Broadway in 2018.
Indeed, Mean Girls has come a long way from its self-help book inspiration, becoming one of the most defining high school movies of the '00s. Now that the adored comedy has found enormous commercial and critical success, what have the primary cast members been working on? Some are staying extremely busy, while others haven't found the same fame. Let's find out what the Mean Girls cast is doing now!
Lindsay Lohan (Cady Heron)
As Cady Heron, the home-schooled teenager who transfers into public high school and forms a friendship with The Plastics, Lindsay Lohan found enormous notoriety (and infamy) after Mean Girls. The former Disney star transitioned into more mature roles following The Parent Trap remake, Life Size, and Freaky Friday, which was also directed by Mark Waters, and Mean Girls was what turned the actress into a teen superstar. Though she returned to Disney with Herbie: Fully Loaded, Lohan appeared in more PG-13 movies like A Prairie Home Companion and Just My Luck, before her tabloid troubles negatively impacted her career.
She continued to make movies, including Machete, Chapter 27, and The Canyons, but she hasn't found the same career success since her height in the mid '00s. Recently, Lohan starred in MTV's Lindsay Lohan's Beach Club. She also ventured into the business world with nightclubs and beach clubs in Greece.
Rachel McAdams (Regina George)
Playing Regina George, the rich popular teenage girl and the leader of The Plastics, Rachel McAdams rose to fame through Mean Girls. Only a couple short years after she made her Hollywood debut in 2002's The Hot Chick, McAdams went on to appear in The Notebook (which also came out in 2004), Red Eye, Wedding Crashers, State of Play, The Time Traveler's Wife, Sherlock Holmes, Midnight in Paris, Morning Glory, About Time, Game Night, Doctor Strange, The Vow, and Spotlight, for which she earned an Oscar nomination.
She also starred in the second season of HBO's True Detective. Most recently, McAdams was seen in 2018's Disobedience, though she briefly stepped away from acting when her first son was born that same year. But she makes her acting return in the upcoming Netflix music-comedy Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. It'll be released in June.
Amanda Seyfried (Karen Smith)
Playing Karen Smith, the bubbly airhead friend of Regina and Gretchen, Amanda Seyfried made her film debut in 2004's Mean Girls. Certainly, that's a pretty fetching way to start your movie career. In the years that followed, Seyfried starred in the Mamma Mia movies, Les Miserables, Dear John, Red Riding Hood, In Time, Jennifer's Body, Chloe, Alpha Dog, Lovelace, First Reformed, Ted 2, Letters to Juliet, and many other movies.
She also had significant roles in TV shows like Big Love, Veronica Mars, and Twin Peaks' newest season. Most recently, Seyfried starred in last year's The Art of Racing in the Rain and voiced Daphne in the recently released Scoob! Next, she'll be seen in You Should Have Left, Things Heard & Seen, Mank, and A Mouthful of Air, which she also produced. Seyfried also became a mother in 2017 with the birth of her daughter.
Lacey Chabert (Gretchen Wieners)
As the unfortunate-named Gretchen Wieners, the member of The Plastics who is desperate to win over Regina's approval, Lacey Chabert didn't find the same success as her fellow Mean Girls stars, but she forged a strong television and voice acting career. For some, her voice work in The Wild Thornberrys is as memorable as her role in this 2004 teen comedy, though she's also known for Party of Five.
Chabert also notably voiced Meg Griffin in Family Guy's first season before Mila Kunis took over the part. In addition to voice-only roles in Bratz movies and TV shows, The Spectacular Spider-Man, Young Justice, Transformers: Rescue Bots, Robot Chicken, and more, Chabert is known for starring in several Hallmark movies. 18 of them, to be exact, starting with 2010's Elevator Girl and leading up to January's Winter in Vail. It's a partnership Chabert is eager to continue.
Jonathan Bennett (Aaron Samuels)
As Aaron Samuels, Regina's ex-boyfriend who later became Cady's love interest, Jonathan Bennett stole lots of hearts in the role. Following the film's release, Bennett appeared in Smallville, Cheaper by the Dozen 2, The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning, Elevator Girl, and the title role of Van Wilder: Freshman Year.
In 2014, he was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars and eliminated in Week 6. Notably, in 2015, Bennett became the host of Food Network's Cake Wars. It ran until 2017. In 2018, he released a pop culture cookbook with Nikki Martin called The Burn CookBook. Last year, Bennett became a houseguest on Celebrity Big Brother. Additionally, in 2017, Bennett came out as gay. He recently starred in The Haunting of Sharon Tate, as well Supergirl and Station 19. He'll next appear in Sorry I Killed You and Snow Falls. He currently hosts Halloween Wars.
Tina Fey (Ms. Sharon Norbury)
In addition to writing the screenplay, Tina Fey plays Ms. Sharon Norbury, the dryly funny calculus teacher, in Mean Girls. Serving as Saturday Night Live's head writer and one of the anchors of Weekend Update during this time, Fey proved herself to be a smart, observant, and piercingly funny writer and performer before Mean Girls came out, but this famous film helped the actress/writer become one of the most prominent comedy voices of the early 21st century.
Following Mean Girls, Fey became the star/creator of NBC's 30 Rock and the co-creator of Netflix's Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. She also starred in Baby Mama, Date Night, Muppets Most Wanted, Sisters, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, and Wine Country. She published a memoir, Bossypants, and wrote the Mean Girls musical, which will become a movie itself. She'll soon be heard in Pixar's Soul and she co-created NBC's upcoming sitcom, Mr. Mayor.
Lizzy Caplan (Janis Ian)
As Janis Ian, the outcast girl who befriends Cady and hatches a plan to take Regina down, Lizzy Caplan gained wider recognition through Mean Girls, and she has continued to find a great deal of success in film and television. Her first acting role was on Freaks and Geeks, though she was later seen in Party Down, Cloverfield, Hot Tub Time Machine, 127 Hours, The Interview, Now You See Me 2 and True Blood. Most notably, Caplan played the lead role in Showtime's Masters of Sex, for which she was Emmy-nominated. Recently, Caplan starred in Hulu's Castle Rock and AppleTV+'s Truth Be Told.
Daniel Franzese (Damian Leigh)
As Damian Leigh, the best friend of Janis and Cady, Daniel Franzese was often a scene-stealer in Mean Girls. Also known for Bully and Party Monster, Franzese has since been seen in War of the Worlds, CSI, Party Down, Burn Notice, Recovery Road, GLOW and Conviction.
Franzese has also been active on the stage, writing, directing and performing productions like I’ve Never Really Made the Kind of Money to Become a Mess and JERSEY SHORESICAL: A FRICKIN ROCK OPERA! He also played a prominent role in HBO's excellent Looking. In 2015, Franzese became an ambassador for the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. He came out as gay in 2014. Franzese also tours doing stand-up comedy. Most recently, he was a guest judge on an episode of RuPaul's Drag Race.
Amy Poehler (June George)
Playing June George, the irresponsible mother of Regina who tries regaining her youth by living vicariously through her teenage daughter, Amy Poehler has a splashy supporting turn in Mean Girls. Though she'd later find future success with Parks and Recreation and a leading voice role in Pixar's Inside Out, Poehler was best known for Saturday Night Live at this time, particularly her long stint on Weekend Update.
While she continues to take on acting roles, notably in Sisters, The House, and Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later fairly recently, Poehler has tackled more projects behind-the-camera lately. Notably, Poehler made her feature directorial debut with Netflix's Wine Country. She's currently in post-production on her sophomore feature, the music-dramedy Moxie, and she co-created Russian Doll and Duncanville, where she provides a voice. Poehler also reprised her role as Leslie Knope for a recent Parks and Recreation special.
Neil Flynn (Chip Heron)
As Chip Heron, Cady's dad, Neil Flynn played a small-but-vital role in Mean Girls. As an actor, Flynn is ultimately more well-known for his TV work. More specifically, TV viewers probably know him best as The Janitor from Scrubs. Following that show's run, Flynn starred in another long-running sitcom, ABC's The Middle. He also made appearances in That '70s Show, CSI, Seinfeld, Smallville, and more over the years. Neil Flynn played a minor role in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and he appeared as himself on three episodes of Jeopardy in 2015. Now, Flynn stars in NBC's sitcom, Abby's.
Tim Meadows (Principal Ron Duvall)
As Principal Ron Duvall, Tim Meadows was another SNL veteran who starred in Mean Girls. In fact, through his ten year stint on the NBC sketch comedy show, Meadows became one of its longest-running cast members. Additionally, Meadows starred in other SNL movies like Coneheads, Wayne's World 2, It's Pat, and his own starring vehicle, The Ladies Man. He also worked with other SNL veterans in The Benchwarmers, Semi-Pro, Grown Ups 1 & 2, Jack & Jill, and Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping. He also did regular work for Lil' Bush, The Bill Engvall Show, Glory Daze, Mr. Box Office, Bob's Burgers, Marry Me, and No Activity.
Additionally, Meadows played a reoccurring character on The Goldbergs, and he got his own spin-off series, Schooled, which premiered last year. He was also the only original cast member to appear in the direct-to-video sequel, 2011's Mean Girls 2.
Who is your favorite Mean Girls star? Who is your favorite Mean Girls character? What's your favorite Mean Girls quote? Let us know in the comment section below!
