This ‘Mean Girls’ Song Was Cut For Being Too Broadway

Mean Girls will bring the 2018 Broadway musical written by Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin to the big screen, but just like any adaptation that attempts to bring a story from the stage to the multiplex, some obstacles arise. One of the musical numbers from the successful Mean Girls Broadway show had to be cut from the movie, primarily because it was too “Broadway” to serve the film. During a recent interview with Collider’s Perri Nemiroff, Mean Girls directors Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. explained why “Stop” didn’t make the cut. Perez said: “The one thing, I’m not sure if it was gonna best serve it, ultimately, it didn’t best serve it, but the one that I was like, ‘Damn, we should have really kept it,’ was “Stop.”” Jayne interjected noting that “the thing is, “Stop” is so Broadway,” to which Perez wholeheartedly agreed.

Jayne went on to say “It’s so much fun, and we are obsessed with “Stop,” but it’s a tap number. It’s fun.” Mourning the loss of the song, Perez added, “I would have loved to fuck that up a little bit.” In the Broadway version of Mean Girls, “Stop” is performed by Damian after he notices that Cady constantly plays dumb to make Aaron Samuels fall in love with her. When her friends notice what Cady’s doing to get the boy’s attention, they perform the musical number to let her know that she can find love without pretending to be someone else. But when it comes to bringing a three-hour-long Broadway show to the big screen, some numbers have to be cut to preserve a shorter runtime. Nevertheless, Mean Girls will pack enough action to compensate for the missing songs.

Just like the 2004 version of the story did, Mean Girls follows Cady (Angourie Rice) as she moves to Chicago due to her father’s job. During her first days at North Shore High School, she’ll run into Regina George (Reneé Rapp), the most popular girl in the school. While the pair become friends at first, things get complicated when Cady falls in love with Aaron, Regina’s ex-boyfriend. The rivalry between the two girls will take control of the school, with every student eager to find out how the conflict will end.

Who Else Is in ‘Mean Girls’?

The cast of Mean Girls will bring enough talent to their musical numbers to blow the roof off theaters this month, but the adult additions to the cast will bring the romantic comedy to an entirely different level. Jenna Fischer, known for playing Pam Beesley throughout nine seasons of The Office, will portray Cady’s mother. And in the middle of the upcoming chaos, Ms. Nurbury (Tina Fey) and Coach Carr (Jon Hamm) will find themselves trapped in a war they can’t control. Regina George and Cady Heron are after each other in a new musical adaptation of the beloved 2004 classic.

Mean Girls is out now in theaters. Stay tuned for Nemiroff’s full conversation with Jayne and Perez.

Mean Girls

Cady Heron is a hit with the Plastics, an A-list girl clique at her new school when she makes the mistake of falling for Aaron Samuels, the ex-boyfriend of alpha Plastic Regina George.

Release Date

January 12, 2024

Director

Samantha Jayne , Arturo Perez Jr.

Studio(s)

Paramount Players , Broadway Video , Little Stranger

Distributor(s)

Paramount Pictures

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