It looks like Amanda Seyfried may add Paramount Pictures to her burn book.
A former star from the movie “Mean Girls” criticized the studio, claiming they utilized her image on merchandise related to the 2004 teen comedy without fairly compensating her for it.
During their chat for Variety’s Actors on Acters series, published on June 9, Amanda expressed her enthusiasm: “It’s so cool to see my face on people’s t-shirts!” However, she confessed a touch of bitterness too, as Paramount hasn’t paid her the money they owe yet.
Although the actress from “Mamma Mia” pointed out that numerous shops carry T-shirts featuring the “Mean Girls” cast, including her own image alongside Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, and Lacey Chabert, she admitted her uncertainty about why she wasn’t receiving royalties for the merchandise related to the comedy film.
As she put it, “I don’t know if it was because I was 17 and dumb or what.”
Regardless of why it happened, nothing has diminished the thrill for me when I see fans wearing merchandise bearing my likeness – it continues to be utterly awe-inspiring.
The actress exclaimed, “‘Mean Girls’ is my all-time favorite film,’ she said, similar to how the girl at TSA expressed her feelings. Yet, I found myself pausing, as I was only 17 at the time and had no involvement in its creation.
TopMob News reached out to Paramount Pictures for comment but has not heard back.
On more than one occasion, Amanda has pondered over her character, the clairvoyant popular girl Karen Smith, from the movie “Mean Girls”. This role has now been transformed into a Broadway play and is scheduled to be made into a musical film in 2024.
As a lifestyle enthusiast, let me share a delightful experience I had earlier this year. Working on the hilarious film penned by Tina Fey was an unfiltered joy, pure and simple. I even half-jokingly said that if anyone were to quote it on my grave, I’d be more than content with that epitaph!
During a March 22nd episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Amanda said that in numerous aspects, the movie was exceptional, and people continue to connect with it. It brings us together then and now, and she remains eager to discuss it.
She added, “Any day, I’ll honor that movie for what it did for me as a person.”
Keep reading for a closer look back at the secrets behind 2004’s Mean Girls.
One time, director Mark Waters, who previously worked with Lindsay Lohan on the film “Freaky Friday,” visited her while she was working on “Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen” in Toronto. He asked her if she’d be interested in appearing in his next movie. At that moment, she had one specific role in mind.
In 2014, she shared with Entertainment Weekly that she yearned to portray the character Regina, having previously played roles in Confessions and Freaky. She wasn’t the popular girl at school then, but rather aspired to be the popular one on set. However, at 17 years old, finding a suitable Cady to challenge her Regina was challenging, and the massive success of Freaky Friday led those in charge to recognize a change was needed.
In a conversation with Vulture back in 2014, Tina Fey shared that at the time, Sherry Lansing, who was in charge at Paramount, insisted that Lindsay Lohan should be the main character in “Mean Girls”. According to Fey, it wouldn’t be feasible for Lohan to play the villain because her fans wouldn’t accept it. It was then Tina Fey’s responsibility to inform the actress about this decision. Reluctantly, Lindsay agreed to take on the lead role, at least getting more lines to say in response.
2. Prior to changing Lohan from playing Regina, Waters auditioned various actresses to act alongside her as Cady. One of these actresses was Rachel McAdams, who was 24 years old at the time.
In conversation with Vulture, Waters stated, “I recall her performing that particular scene,” he said, “and once it had concluded, I shared my thoughts: ‘Despite your stellar talent, you’re far too old for this role. You simply won’t be able to pull off the ingenue.’ To which she responded, ‘I grasp your point, I see where you’re coming from.’
When the search for a new character Regina was necessary, choosing McAdams seemed like an obvious choice. As she explained to EW, “Mark suggested that Cady could be slightly younger, but it fits well if Regina matured faster than usual.
3. To secure the role of Regina, I found myself in a position where I needed to convince the director to look past another potential co-star, whom many favored for the villainous role: Amanda Seyfried. The actress from Mamma Mia!, who was later known for her charming portrayal of Karen, had been a strong contender before I stepped into the delightfully daft character.
According to Waters, she auditioned for the role in Regina and demonstrated a unique brilliance unlike Rachel’s approach. Her portrayal had an ethereal quality, yet retained a hint of eeriness. She was indeed more frightening, but paradoxically, less intimidating. Interestingly, it was Lorne Michaels who recommended her for the role of “the dumb girl.
He continued, “So she came in and read it and nailed it, and we got the best of both worlds.”
4. It’s hard to envision “Mean Girls” without “SNL” veterans Tim Meadows as Mr. Duvall and Amy Poehler as Mrs. George. However, Tina Fey revealed that Paramount had initial reservations.
He shared with Vulture that Paramount had some apprehension towards ‘Saturday Night Live.’ They’d had disappointing experiences with movies related to the show produced by Lorne, so they were hesitant to include many ‘Saturday Night Live’ actors in ‘Mean Girls.’ Their concern was that it might resemble an ‘SNL’ movie, which could discourage viewers.
Meadows, known for his role in the poorly received remake of The Ladies Man (produced by Paramount), had numerous disagreements with the studio, as stated by Waters.
I’m glad Waters helped cast Poehler because she turned out to be crucial in turning mathlete Kevin Gnapoor’s talent-show rap into reality. In truth, Fey trusted her former Weekend Update co-anchor with writing the catchy tune for actor Rajiv Surendra.
Water shared that he will acknowledge Amy for her contribution in teaching the rap skills, as she is more knowledgeable about rap music. He also mentioned that Amy provided instructions on how to perform the rap, and even taught him some of the dance moves and choreography.
6. When Paramount submitted Mean Girls to the MPAA for classification, they initially aimed to label it as an R-rated film, surprisingly. The studio then needed to argue their case to make sure that the intended audience was able to watch the movie in theaters.
In the PG-13 film, we needed to remove many aspects according to Fey in 2018. She recalled thinking that if this movie depicted a boys’ school, the question “Has your cherry been popped?” wouldn’t have been necessary to include. Instead, the line was changed to the less suggestive “Is your muffin buttered?” Not all changes were compromises on the filmmakers’ part, though.
Waters stated to Vulture that the boundary he established was the joke concerning the supposedly wide-spaced woman. The ratings board argued, ‘We cannot grant a PG-13 rating unless you remove that line.’ In response, we utilized the argument that the ratings board was biased because Anchorman had recently received a PG-13 rating, despite Ron Burgundy having an explicit scene, and yet they claimed there was sexual content. We asserted, ‘You’re only denying this because it’s a woman discussing her body parts. There is no sexual context whatsoever, and to claim this limits the audience unfairly is disrespectful to all women.’ Ultimately, they were forced to reconsider their decision.
7. It was actually Jonathan Bennett who had the fortunate opportunity to inquire about the date from Lohan – it was October 3! – but there were several other potential candidates for the part of Aaron Samuels.
In a 2014 conversation with Cosmopolitan, Daniel Franzese (known for his role as Damian), confessed that the character was initially intended for a well-known actor. However, this actor was dismissed during the initial script reading.
In a cautious manner, Franzese noted that another performer hadn’t trimmed his beard nor removed his hat; he was exuding an air of nonchalance. Fearing identification and potential embarrassment, he stated this. People would approach him, suggesting, “You might want to remove your hat.” After the table read, he was dismissed from the role, and Jonathan Bennett, apparently their second pick, was called instead.
9. Apart from what I previously shared, Franzese also mentioned something else to me. He disclosed that Lindsay had informed him earlier that James Franco was under consideration for the role of Aaron Samuels before the actor who was eventually let go. This tidbit struck me as fascinating; although Bennett did an excellent job, having Franco in the role would have been intriguing too.
9. Although Aaron might not have initially considered Bennett for the role, the actor claims he landed it because he closely resembled Fey’s previous Weekend Update co-anchor Jimmy Fallon, as stated in an interview with Huffington Post in 2015, with Fey confirming, “That statement is one hundred percent accurate.
10. According to Fey’s interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2014, she admitted that using real names when writing makes the process simpler. A clear example is the character Glen Coco, who was a minor yet mentioned character, and whose name was chosen after her older brother’s friend.
She shared with the publication that he’s a film editor based in Los Angeles, and I suppose it must be quite challenging for him. Someone mentioned to me there’s a shirt available at Target that reads “You go, Glen Coco!”, which took me by surprise.
Characters with names inspired by real people? For instance, the character Janis Ian, portrayed by Lizzy Caplan, is named after the musician who appeared among the earliest musical guests on Saturday Night Live. Similarly, the character Damian was named after Tina Fey’s high school friend and current TV Guide writer, Damian Holbrook. Cady, on the other hand, was christened after Tina Fey’s college roommate, Cady Garey.
11. Apart from penning the movie’s engaging screenplay, Fey not only graced our screens as Ms. Norbury, the math teacher and Mathletes coach in Mean Girls, but when it came to the mathematical terms she wrote for her character to speak, she was clueless about their meaning herself.
Back in 2004, as a lifestyle expert challenging math stereotypes, I confessed to the New York Times that I found myself in a situation where I was delivering math concepts, despite not fully comprehending them at the time. However, I had a secret weapon – my friend’s boyfriend was a calculus teacher in the Bronx. I borrowed his lesson plans and managed to make those mathematical moments in the script feel authentic.
12. The movie “Mean Girls” is inspired by the parenting book Rosalind Wiseman’s “Queen Bees and Wannabees: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, and Other Realities of Adolescence”. Since it isn’t based on a fictional story, Tina Fey had the liberty to use her own high school experiences to develop the plot while remaining faithful to what was written in Rosalind Wiseman’s book.
The author has largely appreciated Fey’s take on her work, with one minor exception. In an interview with The Atlantic in 2014, she made it clear that trust falls are not something she endorses: “I don’t trust falls, I never have, and I won’t ever do them.” Upon first seeing it, she recalled thinking, “Tina, I can’t do that.
13. Don’t forget about the moment when Amy Poehler’s character, Mrs. George, was unaware that her dog was biting into her breast implant? Let me explain how they managed to create that scene.
13. Remember the instance when Amy Poehler’s character, Mrs. George, didn’t notice her dog nibbling on her breast implant? Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at how they pulled off that moment.
McAdams shared with EW that they attached a hot dog bit to her costume, causing her to fear the dog would attack. Despite this, she remained professional while the dog was nibbling on her fake chest piece. It was a memorable experience for her.
14. As Franzese explained, the original script featured a scene for Damian that was removed prior to filming. This final scene would have depicted what happened to Damian after his junior year, with him planning to audition for American Idol. Simon Cowell was supposedly going to call him chubby, prompting him to rush onto the stage and punch him, according to Franzese’s conversation with Cosmo.
According to what the actor shared with the magazine, numerous modifications were made to the initial conclusion. One such change involved a scene where Mrs. Norbury catches Kevin G red-handed selling ecstasy. This leads to the situation where she is accused of being a drug dealer, and indeed, there are drugs found in her desk when she’s investigated.
In other words, Janis and Damian persuade Kevin G. to attend the school board meeting to admit that he was responsible for the punishment, but Kevin G doesn’t show up. As a result, Damian steps forward and, in essence, lies by claiming responsibility himself, attempting to shield Miss Norbury from blame.
15. Fey initially refused to pen a sequel for the successful movie, a decision she later expressed regret over. As she recalled in an interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2014, “At one point we did discuss the possibility of a sequel, and for some reason I reacted strongly against it, saying, ‘No!!! It’s not right!'” Now, looking back, she wonders, “Why didn’t I do it?” However, she acknowledges that it’s too late to reconsider now.
In an interview with Variety back in 2018, she expressed, “Perhaps it’s beneficial, as we can channel all our energy into this instead.
As the co-author of the smash hit “Mean Girls” musical alongside my talented husband, Jeff Richmond, who is well-known for his work on “30 Rock”, I penned this captivating production that made its debut in 2017 before gracing the stages of Broadway in April 2018. The show was showered with a whopping 12 Tony Award nominations and nine Drama Desk Awards, ultimately earning me the accolade for Outstanding Book of a Musical at the latter event. This groundbreaking work also served as the catalyst for the upcoming 2024 “Mean Girls” musical.
Although a true sequel has never been produced, a movie titled “Mean Girls 2” was created in 2011, which aired on ABC Family (now Freeform). This made-for-TV film featured a separate narrative with no connection to the original movie apart from Tim Meadows reprising his role as the school’s principal. The reception was generally unfavorable.
In contrast, in 2024, the film adaptation of the musical “Mean Girls” hit the screens. Angourie Rice portrayed Cady, while Reneé Rapp reprised her Broadway character as Regina. Other cast members included Bebe Wood (Gretchen), Avantika (Karen), Jaquel Spivey (Damian), Auli’i Cravalho (Janis), and Christopher Briney (Aaron).
Read More
2025-06-10 00:19