Mean Girls (2024) is a musical adaptation of the beloved 2004 teen comedy, infused with Broadway-inspired songs and modern-day humor. The film follows Cady Heron (Angourie Rice), a teenager who moves from Kenya to the U.S. and enters the socially treacherous world of North Shore High School. She quickly befriends Janis Ian (Auli’i Cravalho) and Damian (Jaquel Spivey), who warn her about “The Plastics”—the school’s most feared and influential clique, led by the cunning Regina George (Reneé Rapp), along with her devoted yet insecure followers, Gretchen Wieners (Bebe Wood) and Karen Shetty (Avantika Vandanapu).
When Regina surprisingly invites Cady to join The Plastics, Janis sees an opportunity for Cady to spy on them and sabotage their reign. Initially hesitant, Cady goes along with the plan but soon finds herself tempted by the perks of popularity. Her crush on Regina’s ex-boyfriend, Aaron Samuels (Christopher Briney), complicates matters when Regina, out of jealousy, publicly reclaims Aaron, humiliating Cady. Furious, Cady, Janis, and Damian devise a scheme to destroy Regina’s reputation—tricking her into eating weight-gain bars and turning Gretchen and Karen against her.
As Regina loses her grip on the school, Cady unknowingly becomes the new queen bee, abandoning her real friends and embracing the superficial lifestyle of The Plastics. However, Regina gets her revenge by exposing the infamous “Burn Book,” a journal filled with insults about students and teachers. Chaos erupts as the entire school turns against each other, culminating in a dramatic assembly where students are forced to confront their own toxic behavior.
Regina, furious at Cady, storms out of school and gets hit by a bus, mirroring the original film. The accident serves as a wake-up call for Cady, who takes responsibility for her actions. She apologizes to her friends, mends her relationships, and restores balance at North Shore High. In the end, The Plastics go their separate ways, and Cady finds happiness in being herself, no longer obsessed with popularity.
With catchy musical numbers and fresh twists, Mean Girls (2024) reinvents the classic story for a new generation while staying true to its iconic legacy.
