Lindsay Lohan reunites with ‘Mean Girls’ director for a new Netflix movie
Lindsay Lohan (Cady Heron in ‘Mean Girls’) is teaming up with director Mark Waters (‘Freaky Friday’) for a new Netflix romance: ‘Return to You.’ The actor will star in the film and produce it, with Henry Golding (‘Crazy Rich Asians’) leading her across the board. The streaming service confirmed on Monday, September 28, in an Instagram post, that the movie is already in production. The post shows Lohan taking a selfie while holding up the script.
As reported by Deadline, the script by Eric Champnella is currently set in 2008, four years after ‘Mean Girls’ hit theaters. It’s the story of a powerful but lonely attorney, played by Lohan, who mistakenly receives an emotional DVD a dying woman sends to her husband, played by Golding. Guided only by the clues on the disc, the attorney sets out to find him. No other cast members have been announced yet. Lohan is producing alongside Brad Krevoy (‘Irish Wish’), who also produced her previous Netflix film, ‘Falling for Christmas.’ Olivia Krevoy, Jimmy Townsend, Galen Fletcher and Champnella are the executive producers. The outlet also lists romance credits for both stars, including ‘Just My Luck’ in 2006, ‘Falling for Christmas’ in 2022 and ‘Our Little Secret’ in 2024 for Lohan, and ‘Last Christmas’ for Golding.
The Lohan and Waters pairing dates back to 2003, when he directed her in ‘Freaky Friday.’ A year later, the two made ‘Mean Girls,’ which Paramount released in the United States on April 30, 2004, with a script by Tina Fey and Lorne Michaels producing. That project was inspired by the first film. Waters told Variety in 2025 that Fey, Michaels, and Sherry Lansing watched a rough cut of ‘Freaky Friday’ and decided they wanted both him and Lohan. Interestingly, Waters said he pushed for Lohan to play Regina George rather than Cady, because he felt her forceful personality suited the part. When the search for a Cady turned up no one, the filmmakers went back to Rachel McAdams (‘The Notebook’) for Regina, and Lohan took the lead role.
Waters has since directed several Netflix titles, including ‘He’s All That,’ ‘Mother of the Bride,’ and ‘La Dolce Villa.’ He did not direct the 2025 sequel ‘Freakier Friday,’ and he told Variety that he was not invited back for it. ‘Return to You’ is his first film with Lohan since ‘Mean Girls.’ Netflix has not announced a release date for ‘Return to You.’
