“Mean Girls,” the 2024 version, arrived on Paramount+ last week and it’s already the third most-watched movie on the platform in the US, according to FlixPatrol. The film is an adaptation of the Broadway musical based on the original 2004 comedy, which starred Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams.
While Tina Fey, who wrote the original, also penned the script, the film’s cast is filled with the new generation of stars. Most notably Reneé Rapp, who received rave reviews for her performance as Regina George, as well as an spectacular Angourie Rice, who plays Cady Heron.
The cast also includes Christopher Briney, known for his role in Prime Video‘s “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” Bebe Wood, Avantika, Jaquel Spivey, and Auli’i Cravalho. And despite having big shoes to fill, “Mean Girls” was a success in the box office and received positive reviews.
The new ‘Mean Girls’ is a classic for a new generation
While the marketing for the movie didn’t have to go so hard on millennials (“this is not your mom’s Mean Girls”), this new version takes everything that made the original appealing, but includes some new elements, such as social media. And, it also has great songs.
The high school comedy surpassed $100 million at the global box office after six weeks of release, against a budget of $36 million. It also held the top spot at the domestic box office for three consecutive weeks.
The critical response was mostly favorable, with most of the praise going to the young cast. George, Rice and Cravalho were deemed as the standouts. However, many critics also praised the film for remaining fun and current.
Just as the original, it follows Cady Heron, who after moving from Africa to the suburbs of Illinois, struggles with high school hierarchies. However, she infiltrates the Plastics, the most popular girls in school, commanded by queen bee Regina George. Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. directed the film, in their directorial debuts.
