STACK #235 May 2024

MOVIE FEATURE

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Fun facts about Mean Girls In the new movie, Tina Fey and Tim Meadows reprise their roles of Ms. Norbury and Mr. Duvall. Reneé Rapp also played Regina George in the Broadway musical. The aspect ratio changes from 1:85:1 to 2:35:1 whenever Reneé Rapp sings. This is to give Regina’s songs a music video quality. A standalone sequel to the original movie was released in 2011, titled Mean Girls 2 , with Tim Meadows being the only returning cast member. In 2015 New Line Cinema planned to make a spin-off movie titled Mean Moms , with Jennifer Aniston attached to star. The project was ultimately abandoned. Actor Jonathan Bennett - who played Cady’s crush Aaron Samuels in the original movie - wrote a Mean Girls themed cookbook called The Burn Cookbook: Real Recipes to Feed Your Inner Plastic (2018). Tina Fey created the slang word ‘fetch’ exclusively for the original movie. It has since become part of the common vernacular amongst high school teens. The original movie almost received an American R rating, however one sexually explicit line was removed to earn it a PG-13 rating.

Bebe Wood, Reneé Rapp, and Avantika Vandanapu

movie, and to bring her own spin… I would do any project with Angourie - anything!” We were curious to know what Spivey thought of Angourie’s American accent, and he was

quick with a bold response. “I feel like it was very fifty

fifty,” he smiles of Angourie’s pronunciation efforts. “She’s such a professional, and did her best to stay in it between takes, but sometimes she would slip. We would be talking about snack foods from Australia and I

Mean Girls turns 20 this year, and, to celebrate, writerTina Fey went back to the scribble pad to adapt the 2018 Broadway musical, which was based on her original 2004 classic. Words Glenn Cochrane U sing the original movie as the template, the new musical iteration is a big, sassy affair featuring a new class of players, boasting a dozen songs from the stage show, plus an all-new tune from Reneé Rapp, who plays Queen Bee Regina George. STACK caught up with Jaquel Spivey, the actor behind “almost too gay to function” Damian - the friend of North Shore High School’s newest student Cady (played by Australian actress Angourie Rice). Spivey had nothing but praise for his Aussie co-star. “I think Angourie is

was like ‘Girl, what’s that?’” he smirks. “She also taught me about Kylie Minogue, because I wasn’t familiar, and she was like ‘How are you not familiar with Kylie Minogue?’” In the two decades that have passed since the original film’s release, Mean Girls has become

a connection to Damian. It’s mind

blowing to even say that I have played this character, as Jaquel - as a black man, you know. It’s really an honour.” Stepping into the well-worn shoes

• Mean Girls is out May 15

a bona fide cult classic, ranking up there with the likes of Heathers and Clueless as a clique movie for a generation. It's wild to think, then, that Spivey was only five years old when Mean Girls came out. “I feel like it’s impossible to be alive and not know anything about Mean Girls ,” he says of its legacy. “I found it through my sister. She watched the movie, and somewhere along the way I sat there and I was like, ‘Who is this guy who’s with all these girls? He’s not like the other boys. Like me!” he recalls of Daniel Frannzese’s original portrayal of Damian. “I felt a real connection to him prior to getting cast and being involved with this project. There was always

of a character beloved by an entire generation, Spivey admits that making the movie was a daunting prospect. “I absolutely felt the pressure,” he offers. “But also, I felt the respect that everyone had for this movie. I felt the love that everyone had for this movie, and we all walked into this knowing that we were chosen by Tina Fey, and that no one had plans to remake anything or to replace anything. We were adding to it, the same way the Broadway show wasn’t intended to take over anything. And that takes off a lot of the pressure.”

Given he’s a self-confessed fan of the 2004 movie, it’s not surprising Spivey was familiar with the stage show before landing the gig. “I did see the musical,” he admits, before confessing facetiously, “I didn’t get to see it in person… but that’s the wonder of a Broadway bootleg! You can see it from wherever, whenever!”

one of the most humble, kind, creative, collaborative people,” he tells us. “She’s the type of person you just want to hug every time you see her. And to watch her in her element and be so professional, and to bring so much authenticity to the

Jaquel Spivey, Angourie Rice and Auli'i Cravalho

Mean Girls OST on Opaque Candy Floss vinyl

is available now, while stock lasts.

24 MAY 2024

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