Warning: This post contains spoilers for cameo appearances in Mean Girls.
It’s been 20 years since Tina Fey’s Mean Girls strutted into theaters and our hearts in a pair of pink stilettos. The movie centers around normal girl Cady Heron attempting to infiltrate the popular clique at her new high school—including their queen bee, Regina George—and accidentally becoming one of them in the process. The film was previously adapted for a stage musical that opened on Broadway in 2018, and now that show has been reworked into a movie musical with a brand new set of stars. Angourie Rice is the film’s protagonist, Cady, originally played by Lindsay Lohan; pop star Reneé Rapp revives her Broadway role as Regina, introduced to us on film by Rachel McAdams; Avantika plays the bimbo best friend Karen, played in the 2004 version by Amanda Seyfried; and Bebe Wood steps into Gretchen Wieners’ shoes, once worn by Lacey Chabert.
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After Paramount announced that the movie was getting a reboot, one of fans’ first questions was who would be coming back for a cameo. Some actors reprise their roles entirely, including Fey as math teacher Ms. Norbury and Tim Meadows as the principal, Mr. Duvall. McAdams told Variety back in December that she was open to making a cameo in the new movie, but things didn’t ultimately work out. “[Fey] and I sort of dabbled with a few ideas, but it was tough to make it all work in the end,” she said. “I was really down for whatever she wanted to do. I think the direction it went in will be fantastic, and I cannot wait to see it.”
As for the other Plastics, audiences saw Lohan, Seyfried, and Chabert reunite in a Walmart ad in early November, with McAdams conspicuously absent. She told Variety that she turned down the ad because she wasn’t excited about doing a commercial. “A movie sounded awesome, but I’ve never done commercials, and it just didn’t feel like my bag,” McAdams said. She said she didn’t know everyone was doing it. “I would, of course, always love to be part of a ‘Mean Girls’ reunion and hang with my plastics, but yeah, I found that out later.”
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The directors tell TIME that “everyone [from the main cast] was invited” to cameo, though it didn’t work out in every case. TIME reached out to Seyfried and Chabert for comment but did not hear back.
Although none of the original Plastics returned for the new movie, there are still a few cameos that may surprise (and delight) audiences. Here are all the cameos in the new Mean Girls movie, out Jan. 12.
Chris Olsen
It’s hard to miss Chris Olsen’s content on TikTok. He gained millions of followers in the early days of the pandemic, but has steadily climbed to become one of the most popular creators on the app, with over 12.5 million followers. He’s a professional fangirl and makes content with popular creators including Meghan Trainor, his close friend. Olsen is also a close pal of Rapp’s. He appeared in her music video for “Too Well” (which, coincidentally, makes mention of Lindsay Lohan). Olsen makes two quick appearances in Mean Girls. He briefly appears in two separate video montages, one of people bullying Regina and another in which classmates try to decide whether or not they like Cady.
Megan Thee Stallion
As promotion for the movie, Rapp collaborated with rap superstar Megan Thee Stallion on a very catchy original song called “Not My Fault.” The two made a music video together for the song, which could have been the last we saw of Megan here.
But at the movie’s New York premiere, audible gasps could be heard from the audience when the Real Hot Girl, an avid TikTok user herself, also appeared in the bullying montage. The cameo was one of the most welcome surprises of the film, as Meg brought her effervescent personality to the big screen, just a few months after doing the same in A24’s Dicks: The Musical.
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Lindsay Lohan
The biggest crowd reaction undoubtedly arrived in the moment when Lindsay Lohan appeared on screen. The original Cady Heron returned to North Shore—well, kind of. Lohan plays the host of the climactic Mathletes competition, playing opposite the new Cady Heron. She quizzes the two teams, and as Cady racks her brain trying to remember all of the calculus lessons she ignored because she was too fascinated by Aaron Samuels (Christopher Briney), she asks herself why she can’t remember anything. Lohan replies, “I don’t know, girl. I don’t know your life.” Then, Rice’s Cady delivers one of the most iconic lines in the movie, “The limit does not exist!” and North Shore High’s team claims their title as Mathlete champions. In 2022, Lohan told Extra! that she would be open to a Mean Girls remake but was concerned about messing with the movie’s legacy. Her appearance in the film was the perfect addition to round out a few fun cameos.
Bonus: Ashley Park returns to the musical in a preannounced role
The Emily in Paris and Joy Ride star originated the role of Gretchen Wieners in the Mean Girls musical on Broadway, which earned her a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical. Theater fans were excited to see Park back at North Shore High, but she was not one of Regina’s minions this time. Here, the seasoned Broadway performer plays Cady, Janis (Auli’i Cravalho), and Damian’s (Jaquel Spivey) strict French teacher, whom IMDb credits as Madame Park. Her cameo was not a surprise in the movie because she appeared at the tail end of the trailer, which was released back in November, but it’s a pleasing callback for fans nonetheless.