Middletown Teen Is An Extra In New 'Mean Girls' Movie

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — It was a dream come true for Sophie Anderson.

Last March, the mother of this 20-year-old girl from the Navesink section of Middletown asked her: Would she like to appear in the movie "Mean Girls?"

It's the new musical version of Tina Fey's 2004 mega-hit, and was filmed last March and April on the Mater Dei campus, the now-closed Catholic high school in Middletown. "Mean Girls" will be released in theaters across America Friday; it starts streaming on Paramount next month.

Last winter, Sophie's mom, Deirdre Anderson, read this article on Patch: The Hollywood casting agency was looking for local teens to appear as extras.

"They said they specifically wanted teens with disabilities, so after I read the article on Patch, I contacted them and sent some photos of Sophie."

Sophie, 19 at the time, "absolutely loves movies, especially musicals," said her mother. "She is obsessed with 'Grease.' She loves dancing and she loves theater."

Sophie is her third and youngest daughter, and she has Down Syndrome. She also has autism. Sophie is "very quiet," says her mother. "She is mostly non verbal."

Grant Wilfley casting agency wrote her back "immediately," she said. "They said they loved her."

They told Anderson to bring her daughter to Mater Dei in early March. The high school was buzzing with film crews, and stars like Fey and comedian Tim Meadows casually walked by.

"It was awesome. Funny enough, they asked me to be an extra!" Anderson laughed. She said the producers asked her to play the role of a teacher, and she appears standing directly behind Fey in the high school gym.

When you watch the movie, look for Sophie to appear in two scenes:

• The scene where all the girls start fighting in the hallway over the Burn Book, and Principal Duvall (played by Meadows) famously pulls the fire alarm.
• The "trust" scene, which immediately follows, where Fey tells the teen girls to be nicer to each other and "trust fall" into each others' arms.

"In the (hallway) scene, they put her next to a person with a speaking part so she will definitely be seen," said Anderson. "Sophie loved it! All the dancing, the singing; she just liked all the excitement. She loved sitting with the other teenage girls on the bleachers as the crews filmed the scenes over and over again. She loved sitting in hair and make-up. She just ate it all up!"

"Sophie usually walks very slowly, but she kept up with all the other girls," continued her mother. "She loved being with all the other teenage girls. At lunch breaks, she ditched me to sit with the teenage extras. And the other girls were so kind. They and the film crew went out of their way for her, to make sure she was always included and got whatever she needed."

Here's the trailer:

Sophie and her mom filmed for two days last March: 10 hours the first day and nine hours the second.

"It really was grueling, just like they say!" said her mother. "I told them Sophie has to be watched all the time, but I said yes (to being an extra). They handed me my wardrobe and all the other teens there kept an eye on Sophie while we were on set."

Sophie and the entire family got COVID in mid-March, and had to take a break from filming. The studio called her back for a possible third scene, this one outdoors, but then changed their mind.

Red carpet screening party this Sunday in Atlantic Highlands

This weekend will be Sophie's big moment of fame. Anderson rented out Smodcastle cinema in Atlantic Highlands Sunday for a screening party for Sophie and all her friends.

Sophie goes to Middletown High School South, and she is part of a very tight-knit group of fellow Middletown teens with special needs.

"All of us parents met when our kids were in pre-school," said Anderson. "You should see what an awesome group of kids this is. They have Down Syndrome, autism, trisomy 9, SynGAP syndrome. I could go on. They all go trick-or-treating together and stuff. They will all be there Sunday."

"We got a red carpet, a 'Mean Girls' step and repeat to stand in front of, and all our friends and neighbors are coming," said Anderson. "Our hairdresser is even coming. Sophie will wear a lavender dress and I have a professional photographer coming to take photos. I even got her a gold plastic Oscar."

Sophie is "not nervous" at all for her movie debut, said her mother.

"She is so excited. She's a movie star!"

'Mean Girls,' Filmed Throughout NJ, Hits Theaters Friday (Jan. 2024)

How To Audition As An Extra In 'Mean Girls' Filming In Middletown (Feb. 2023)