15 Best Movies Like Mean Girls

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

When you think of movies that perfectly define the 2000s as a decade, “Mean Girls” should be a film that pops up frequently in conversation. Based on Rosalind Wiseman’s book “Queen Bees and Wannabes,” the high school comedy is the brainchild of “Saturday Night Alive” alum Tina Fey, shortly before her transition to TV with one of the best sitcoms of all time, “30 Rock.” In a time when comedy films were dominated by men, “Mean Girls” set itself apart as a generational 2000s comedy centered on teenage girls, without sacrificing the raunchiness and drama that populated movies set in all boys schools. 

After being imprinted on pop culture for over 20 years, even inspiring a musical-turned-movie in 2024, “Mean Girls” has influenced a lot of teen comedies over the past two decades. However, there were films decades earlier than “Mean Girls” that influenced Fey’s deeply relatable, albeit absurd comedy just as much. These movies, spanning both before and after the release of “Mean Girls” (as well as its musical remake) are the best watches for fans who want something totally “fetch.”

Here are the best movies like “Mean Girls” to seek out immediately.

No one captured the magic of high school in the 1980’s better than John Hughes, the writer behind iconic comedies like “The Breakfast Club,” “Sixteen Candles,” and “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” However, many would agree the biggest precursor to what Tina Fey did with “Mean Girls” is Hughes’ 1986 comedy “Pretty in Pink,” centered on the romance between the outcast Andie (Molly Ringwald) and preppy Blane (James Spader), featuring a supporting cast including Jon Cryer as Andie’s best friend Duckie and Harry Dean Stanton as her father Jack. 

Like the best John Hughes films, “Pretty in Pink” isn’t just an accurate depiction of ’80s social cliques in a high school setting, but it’s also a warm and cozy rom-com with a lot of heart. In fact, the original “Pretty in Pink” ending that test audiences couldn’t stand played into typical rom-com tropes, which makes the final decision to keep Andie and Duckie as platonic soul-mates feeling just right. Plus, like “Mean Girls,” it’s got a whole lot of the color pink in it. 

Released in 1988, “Heathers” is purposefully a lot darker than most John Hughes comedies are, yet it certainly set the stage for the kind of humor that Tina Fey would employ with “Mean Girls.” The movie centers on Winona Ryder as Veronica, the one girl not named Heather in her high school’s popular clique, who is drawn into a tense romance with new student J.D. (Christian Slater), a sociopathic killer of students. Obviously, the absurd and oftentimes brutal heights that “Heathers” reaches outclass anything in “Mean Girls,” but fans of the 2004 film will find a similar examination of high school politics.

If anything, there’s an alternative version of “Mean Girls” out there where Janis and Damian are more like J.D. in their determined take-down of the Plastics, though hopefully after the “Heathers” ending, no one’s rooting for them as much in that version. There’s also one other aspect that makes “Heathers” and “Mean Girls” coincidentally similar in the realm of high school comedies: They were both adapted into stage shows, with “Heathers: The Musical” debuting Off-Broadway in 2014, four years before the Broadway premiere of “Mean Girls.” 

“Clueless” is one of the most iconic high school comedies of the 1990s, and some would call it the “Mean Girls” of its decade. Like “Mean Girls,” there are a lot of movies like “Clueless” that have been influenced by the 1995 film, which reinterprets Jane Austen’s novel “Emma,” starring Alicia Silverstone as the rich and popular Cher Horowitz, who sets her sights on turning the reputation around for an awkward new girl, Tai, played by Brittany Murphy, and along the way earning the affection of the skeptical Josh, played by Paul Rudd (who still looks the same today). 

Again, “Clueless” is another timeless high school comedy that, like “Mean Girls,” got its chance at a stage adaptation with “Clueless: The Musical,” which premiered Off-Broadway in 2018. The film is also, believe it or not, set to continue on with a proper sequel series on Peacock, with Silverstone attached to reprise her now-iconic role. As if! It’ll be an incredibly difficult job to outdo the perfection that is the original 1995 movie. 

Nowadays, it might be hard to watch the best Natasha Lyonne movies and TV shows and imagine a time where she didn’t sport her signature rasp, a stylish ’70s-esque wardrobe, and bumming a cigarette like she’s the coolest leading lady in Hollywood. Alas, her career as a movie star kicked off in the ’90s with films like “But I’m a Cheerleader,” in which Lyonne stars as Megan, a high schooler who is sent to a conversion therapy camp by her parents in order to cure her of being a lesbian.

Not only is “But I’m a Cheerleader” a great comedy that echoes a lot of the social commentary found in “Mean Girls,” but it’s also one of the most influential LGBTQ+ movies ever made, skyrocketing the careers of stars like Lyonne, as well as Clea DuVall and Melanie Lynskey. It also, get this, has a musical adaptation that debuted all the way back in 2005, but it has never seen a run on Broadway. Hopefully that can change sometime soon, because for a film thats 26 years old, it’s as relevant as ever. 

Lindsay Lohan’s career has been quite a whirlwind since the 2000s, after she made her breakthrough as a child star in films like “The Parent Trap,” but her career really hit its stride in 2003 when she starred in “Freaky Friday.” The now-iconic sci-fi comedy, based on a novel by Mary Rodgers, explores what happens when a punky teenager (Lohan) swaps bodies with her mother (Jamie Lee Curtis). It’s obviously a lot more high-concept than a film like “Mean Girls,” but not only does it share a lead in Lohan, but it’s directed by the same person: Mark Waters. 

By now, it seems unlikely that anyone hasn’t seen “Freaky Friday,” given how much of a box office success it was when it released in 2003. However, it’s hard to state just how influential “Freaky Friday” was to body-swap movies that have come after it, like “17 Again” or “The Change-Up.” In case you’ve forgotten about it, fret not, because in 2025, “Freakier Friday” will feature Lohan and Curtis reprising their role to swap bodies again. 

Few could’ve expected that a lowly writer at “Saturday Night Live” in the late ’90s would not only become the show’s head writer, shaping the iconic sketch series for decades to come, but would become a massive film and TV star in her own right, thanks to her NBC sitcom “30 Rock” and comedy vehicles like “Date Night” and “Mean Girls.” While Fey hasn’t done a movie quite like “Mean Girls” since it released in 2004 (aside from, obviously, the 2024 musical remake), an entry in her filmography with a similar tone is the 2008 comedy “Baby Mama.”

Set in Pennsylvania and co-starring Fey’s former “Weekend Update” co-host and “Mean Girls” mom Amy Poehler, “Baby Mama” explores the unexpected friendship between a single career woman (Fey) and the loud-mouthed Philadelphian who offers to be the surrogate for her future baby (Poehler). While it’s about women who are far beyond their high school years, its exploration of the complexities of female friendship makes “Baby Mama” an obvious next step for those who want to watch something a bit more mature, but immature enough in its comedy, after “Mean Girls.” 

Well before Emma Stone was a two-time Oscar winner, she was a queen of teen comedies, with prominent roles in “Superbad” and “Zombieland,” though it was “Easy A” that proved she was a leading lady in the making. In “Easy A,” she plays Olive Penderghast, a high schooler who takes advantage of a nasty rumor about her (non-existent) dating life by letting nerdy or closeted guys at her school pay to claim they’ve slept with her, embracing a “Scarlet Letter”-inspired reputation that incites the anger of her school’s church youth group. 

Given the raunchiness of this film, it’s not surprising that later in her career, Emma Stone found the controversial sex scenes in “Poor Things” funny. Still, “Easy A” is a refreshing high school comedy in which the power dynamic is restructured in the female characters’ favor, making Stone’s Olive one of the best characters she’s ever played, including her Oscar-winning roles. Even the film’s supporting cast resembles “Mean Girls,” including “SNL” alums (Fred Armisen), former child stars (Amanda Bynes in one of her best roles), and future heartthrobs (Penn Badgley). 

Out of all the films on this list, “Jennifer’s Body” might be the hardest sell to fans of “Mean Girls,” particularly because it’s a full-blown horror movie. Although its initial theatrical release was underwhelming, “Jennifer’s Body” became a true cult classic over the years, garnering a massive LGBTQ+ fanbase who fell in love with the film’s story of a high schooler (played by Megan Fox in her prime) who is possessed by a demon and starts killing boys at her school via cannibalism. 

Notably, “Jennifer’s Body” shares one of its leads with “Mean Girls” in Amanda Seyfried, who played the ditzy Karen but goes the complete opposite direction in this film as the aptly-named Needy, Jennifer’s insecure and envious best friend who becomes the one person brave enough to stop the killings. If you’re not a huge fan of blood and gore, “Jennifer’s Body” might not be for you, but its relatable depiction of high school and, at times, cathartic expression of female teen rage, it’s only a stone’s throw from the 2004 flick. 

Hailee Steinfeld immediately became a star when she was nominated for an Oscar for the Coen Brothers’ “True Grit,” but the best Steinfeld movies and TV shows came as she grew into her own as an actress. Probably the most notable example of these is “The Edge of Seventeen,” a 2016 coming-of-age film in which Steinfeld plays Nadine, a misfit high schooler who struggles with the romance between her best friend Krista (Haley Lu Richardson) and her older brother Darian (Blake Jenner). 

While “The Edge of Seventeen” may be darker and more dramatic than “Mean Girls,” there’s a lot of common ground between the two in terms of representing the hardships of being a teenage girl in a modern high school setting. Plus, Steinfeld gives another Oscar-worthy performance as Nadine, best exemplified by a scene where she tells her teacher Mr. Bruner (Woody Harrelson) that she’s going to commit suicide, only for Bruner to tell her with a straight face that he’s doing the same because of her. 

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org

If there’s any film of the past decade that was robbed of every single Oscar it was nominated for, it’s probably “Lady Bird.” Greta Gerwig’s feature debut in 2017 established her as one of the great directors of the modern era, which would be further proven by 2019’s “Little Women” and 2023’s “Barbie.” But “Lady Bird” is still her most relatable and deeply personal film of the three, in which Saoirse Ronan leads a lovely coming-of-age tale centered on Christine, a high schooler pining to leave her hometown of Sacramento for college against the wishes of her mother (Laurie Metcalf).

Whereas “Mean Girls” might appeal to young female audiences more so than older male audiences, “Lady Bird” goes beyond gender or age, balancing both heart-wrenching drama with scenes so funny they’ll make you cry. It says a lot that, in this film, Timothée Chalamet is probably the least interesting actor on screen, with Ronan somehow capable of stealing every scene, even though the film is named after her character. Seriously… where is her Oscar?

Put into the context of its release in 2018, “Love, Simon” is a fairly ordinary teen movie, but it’s one that is long overdue. Based on the 2015 novel “Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda” by Becky Albertalli, the movie centers on high schooler Simon Spier, who struggles to hide his sexuality from his friends and family whilst uncovering the identity of a classmate who he’s been messaging with romantically online. It’s like a “Mean Girls” for the modern era, featuring very necessary updates towards the incorporation of the Internet and LGBTQ+ representation. 

Soundtracked by music from Jack Antonoff, “Love, Simon” feels like a middle ground between the idealistic suburban cinema of John Hughes and the more comical, absurd worlds created by writers like Tina Fey or Cody Diablo (the writer of “Jennifer’s Body” and “Juno”). It also spawned a sequel series on Hulu and Disney+, “Love, Victor,” set at the same high school but featuring a new lead in Michael Cimino as Victor, another teen with similar identity struggles to Simon’s in the film. 

To say “Mean Girls” is all about the teenagers would be a disservice to some of the funniest characters in the film: the adults. If you were obsessed with the performances from Fey, Poehler, Tim Meadows, and Ana Gasteyer in “Mean Girls,” then the film for you would be “Blockers,” the 2018 directorial debut of former “30 Rock” writer Kay Cannon. The film centers on several parents (John Cena, Leslie Mann, Ike Barinholtz) who are determined to stop their teenage daughters (Geraldine Viswanathan, Kathryn Newton, Gideon Adlon) from losing their virginities on prom night.

Especially for a film released during an all-time drought for raunchy comedies, “Blockers” is a surprisingly charming, sex-positive adventure with some great performances from all of its cast members. It’s a lot more focused on the dynamics between parents and their growing children rather than the internal politics of high schoolers, but the laughs-per-minute are just as plentiful. If you haven’t seen “Blockers,” do yourself a favor and pick it for a future movie night. 

“Booksmart” has drawn a lot of comparisons to “Superbad,” given that Olivia Wilde’s hilarious, female-driven coming-of-age comedy centers on two misfits (played by Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever) who attempt to redeem themselves at a party on the last day of school. However, it shares a lot with “Mean Girls” too, in the sense that it feels like a high school comedy that succinctly captures the era of its 2019 release. It even features a healthy amount of “SNL” alum (Will Forte, Jason Sudeikis, Mike O’Brien) and up-and-coming talent (Molly Gordon, Skyler Gisondo, Billie Lourd). 

“Booksmart” is also a lot more experimental than “Mean Girls” in ways that fans of the 2004 film would probably appreciate, though at its heart it does an amazing job of displaying the heartfelt love between two female best friends. In ten years, high school comedies will likely be drawing inspiration from “Booksmart” just as much as they did from “Mean Girls” in the years since its release, and for good reason. 

“Theater Camp” is a bit of an outlier on this list just in terms of its presentation. For starters, it’s a mockumentary centered not at a high school, but at a summer theater program with an eclectic staff and not enough funding to fulfill their ulterior goals. The film stars Ben Platt and Molly Gordon, who both co-wrote the film with Noah Galvin and Nick Lieberman (Gordon and Lieberman also directed), but like “Mean Girls” its biggest strength is its ensemble, which includes Ayo Edebiri, Jimmy Tatro, Amy Sedaris, and Patti Harrison.

As reviewers praised of the film after its Sundance premiere in 2023, “Theater Camp” can rub elbows with the best mockumentaries, drawing favorable comparisons to Christopher Guest’s “Waiting for Guffman” as well as shows like “Parks and Recreation.” Its comedic stylings might be more niche than “Mean Girls” (theater kids, this one’s for you), but those who are in on the jokes will probably laugh harder at this film and quote it more than any other comedy in recent years. 

What do you get when you remake “Mean Girls” in the present day, add in the comedic stylings of Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri, and imbue the plot with echoes of “Fight Club” for good measure? Well, you’d get “Bottoms,” the 2023 high school comedy in which two down-on-their-luck lesbian high schoolers (played by Sennott and Edebiri) start a fight club in an effort to woo cheerleaders (Kaia Gerber and Havana Rose Liu) and defend themselves from the absurd but everyday violence of high school sports.

“Bottoms” is like the best of “Mean Girls” mixed with other films from this list like “But I’m a Cheerleader” and “Booksmart,” resulting in a chaotic sapphic fever dream that’ll surely be a staple in rewatch parties. It particularly has co-writer Emma Seligman, who also collaborated with Sennott on the 2020 drama “Shiva Baby,” to thank, as they’ve set themselves up to be one of the most promising young comedy directors in recent years. If any film on this list earns the title of being the most “fetch,” it’s definitely “Bottoms.”