Fey, Michaels and Paramount's chairman Sherry Lansing wanted to cast Lindsay Lohan after seeing her performance in Freaky Friday (2003). Lohan was originally set to play Regina George, but the casting team ended up feeling she was their strongest choice for the role of Cady Heron, and since executives feared the "mean girl" role would alienate her audience, she eventually agreed to play the lead. Rachel McAdams was cast as Regina because Fey felt McAdams being "kind and polite" made her perfect for such an evil-spirited character and Waters felt Lohan was "a little intimidated" by her which made him like their dynamic. McAdams had originally auditioned for the role of Cady but was deemed "a bit too old" for the character. [11] According to casting director Marci Liroff, Blake Lively was the top choice to play the role of Karen Smith, but was told by the producers to keep looking. Amanda Seyfried originally auditioned for Regina, and although director Mark Waters thought she was "fantastic", the producers instead suggested her for Karen due to her "spacey and daffy sense of humor". [12] [13] Lizzy Caplan was at first considered too beautiful for the role of Janis Ian, for which Waters felt a " Kelly Osbourne-type" was necessary, but Caplan was chosen for being able to portray raw emotion. Evan Rachel Wood was offered a role in the film, but turned it down due to scheduling conflicts, a decision she later regretted. [14] Mary Elizabeth Winstead was asked to audition for the role of Gretchen Wieners, but her mother declined as she disliked the script. [15] Ashley Tisdale also auditioned for Gretchen. [11] Jonathan Bennett was a last-minute replacement after the actor originally slated to play the role of Aaron Samuels was fired. James Franco had previously been considered for Aaron as well. [16] Fey's decision to hire Bennett was due to his resemblance to her longtime SNL co-star Jimmy Fallon. [17] Both Lacey Chabert and Daniel Franzese were the last actors tested for their roles. Fey wrote two roles based on fellow SNL alumni, Amy Poehler, whom Fey thought the producers would not accept because of being too young to portray a teenager's mother, and Tim Meadows, and the cast ended up with a fourth veteran of the show, Ana Gasteyer. [9] Filming [ edit ] Yahr, Emily (January 21, 2011). " 'Mean Girls 2' twice as nasty as the original". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017 . Retrieved July 30, 2017. The film is a hilarious take on high school culture and the dangers of trying to fit in with the popular crowd. The script, written by Tina Fey, is full of witty one-liners and memorable moments that have become ingrained in pop culture.

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Baty, Emma (April 30, 2019). "Daniel Franzese, aka Damian From 'Mean Girls,' Literally Can't Wear Pink Anymore". Cosmopolitan . Retrieved October 5, 2020. Years Later, the Clique Still Reigns". New York Times. April 25, 2014. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020 . Retrieved October 3, 2020. Mean Girls [SteelBook]". Best Buy. September 27, 2022. Archived from the original on October 2, 2022 . Retrieved October 2, 2022.Mean Girls' Has a One-Day Run on TikTok". New York Times. October 4, 2023 . Retrieved October 4, 2023. Mean Girls' Cast Raises Money for Thirst Project on Oct. 3". Hollywood Reporter. October 3, 2019. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021 . Retrieved September 30, 2020.