20 years ago, Mean Girls arrived in cinemas and changed the teen film genre forever. Sharp, clever and subversive, the comedic skill of writer Tina Fey blended perfectly with stellar performances from Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams, created absolute comedy perfection.
If you haven't rewatched Mean Girls in a while, now is the perfect time, since the modern day version (which is a film adaptation of the musical adaptation of the original film), is about to land in cinemas. Yes, that's right, Mean Girls is back – but this time it features an (almost) entirely new cast, plenty of big musical numbers and a slightly modernised script.
To celebrate the new film's premiere, we revisited the old ones from 2004 to remind ourselves (as if we needed reminding) what all the fuss was about. And while the original film hasn't aged tremendously (hello 00s fat-shaming), images of the premieres are a delight to look at. Take a dive into some of our favourite pictures from the London, New York and LA debuts.
Nine Things We've Learned From The Original Mean Girls Premieres
1 of 91. Lindsay Lohan was an absolute star
In recent years, Lindsay has struggled in her career, battling drink and drug issues. But it's good to be reminded that she was an absolute star: glamorous, gorgeous, and with the best red hair in the business. Mean Girls was her undeniable professional peak. Fingers crossed for a Phoenix-like return soon.
2 of 92. That said, she was still learning
Did you know all stars stand in the same way on a red carpet? Well Lindsey actually smiled, rather than offering the classic 'me? famous? I had no idea' pout.
3 of 93. Bad jeans didn't only happen in the early 90s
As broadcasters Sarah Cawood (remember her?!) and Holly Willoughby demonstrate, pre-distressed flares and turn-ups the length of a calf used to exist, and people used to wear them with pride.
4 of 94. The guest list was.... interesting
Some highlights included Ruby Wax and VS, the short-lived R&B group backed by Blue's Simon Webbe. Look carefully at the man on the left: it's Marvin Humes, pre JLS.
5 of 95. Damian used to date women
Daniel Franseze, who plays 'too-gay-to-function' Damian, puckered up on the red carpet at the LA premiere. He came out as gay in 2014 and is a staunch human and civil rights campaigner. Good man.
6 of 96. Aaron Samuels was really hot
The heart-throb of the film, played by Jonathan Bennett, had that whole Zac Efron-in-his-dad's-suit thing down. He also came out in 2017. Look at the Mean Girls men, living their truth. Lovely.
7 of 97. Rachel McAdams really liked the colour plum
Colour co-ordinating her dress and hair, did Rachel McAdams miss the memo that on Wednesdays we wear pink? As an aside, though, it's funny to see the woman who would become the Academy Award-winning, Ryan Gosling-snogging star look so doe-eyed on one of her first red carpets.
8 of 98. Lizzy Caplan is nothing like her character
In the film, Janice is an anarchic teen who doesn't care about the materialism and vanity of the Plastics world. But at the New York premiere, actress Lizzy Caplan showed that she could glam up with the rest of them. Honestly, she's barely recognisable. An honorary mention to Lindsay's fake tan/white dress combo. Genuinely brave.
9 of 99. Amanda Seyfriend doesn't age
Although that can't quite be said about Mean Girls the original film. For starters, we're sure a burn book would take the form of a Tumblr or Ask.fm these days. Whether it's aged badly or not, one thing's for certain: It's fetch.
READ MORE: 9 Of The Disney Channel's Biggest Stars, Then And Now
READ MORE: The Internet Is Obsessed With These Viral Sex And The City Videos