Mean Girls was released in 2004, an entire sixteen years ago that flew by in the blink of an eye, but nonetheless, it’s still as fetch as ever, and will always have a huge place in our hearts.  We still wear pink on Wednesdays, don’t let people sit with us, and of course, always get excited when we realize it’s October 3rd. When Ariana Grande honored the iconic film in her music video of Thank U, Next’, it was really just another reminder of how famed Mean Girls really is.  And while you might think you know just about everything about the movie, there are in fact tons of hidden secrets from behind the scenes that you surely didn’t know. 

For starters, you likely aren’t aware of the fact that the movie was actually inspired by a book by Rosalind Wiseman. It was a self-help book targeted towards parents who were trying to better understand their teenage girls. Many of the terms, such as Wannabes and Queen Bees were actually coined by Wiseman, and according to the author, the movie totally nailed how teenage girls really behave, unfortunately. Another exciting behind-the-scenes secret is that Janis Ian, Cady’s rebellious friend, is actually a real person outside of the character in the movie!  She was named after a guest on an episode of Saturday Night Live, and we all, of course, know Tina Fey’s background there. 

GettyImages/CBS/CBSPhotoArchive