Ariana Grande just gifted fans with the release of her highly-anticipated “Thank U, Next” music video, today (Nov. 30).
The over-the-top visual for Grande’s empowering breakup song pays homage to four romantic comedies of the 2000s: Legally Blonde, Mean Girls, 13 Going On 30 and Bring It On. To bring these movie scenes to life, Billboard’s Woman of the Year called on many of the actual stars from the rom-com films, among numerous other celebrities, to make cameos in her video.
In honor of the video’s release, Billboard has put together a list of all of the familiar faces in the official “Thank U, Next” music video.
Troye Sivan
Sivan, who Grande has referred to as her “bff,” appears in the Mean Girls-inspired segment of the video where ridiculous rumors are being spread about Grande. “I heard she’s a lesbian now and dating some girl named Aubrey,” Sivan says of his “Dance to This” collaborator. Sivan’s rumor refers to the misheard “Thank U, Next” lyric that sent fans into a Twitter frenzy over Grande’s sexuality. He is also, unfortunately, shoved into a locker by a passing Regina George, aka Grande.
troye sivan being shoved in the thank u, next video i am sad pic.twitter.com/xQpFjiR2hq
— raisin bran (*´-`) (@Sanguinityy) November 30, 2018
Kris Jenner
The Kardashian-Jenner matriarch was truly born to play the role of Ariana Grande’s mom Joan playing Regina George’s mom in Mean Girls, was she not?
#proudmama — #thankunextvideo https://t.co/GGpPNUC4N2 pic.twitter.com/STvqG8H8qe
— Kris Jenner (@KrisJenner) November 30, 2018
Johnathan Bennett
Bennett, who played Mean Girls heartthrob Aaron Samuels in the 2004 film, makes his return to deliver a variation on one of the film’s iconic lines. “Ariana Grande told me my hair looks sexy pushed back — she’s not wrong,” Bennet says.
Stefanie Drummond
Drummond, another Mean Girls alumni, famous for her line about Regina George punching her in the face, makes her return to talk about Grande’s whirlwind relationship with Pete Davidson. “Ariana broke off an engagement, so I found a guy to propose to me and I broke off an engagement,” Drummond wisecracks.
Jennifer Coolidge
Coolidge reprises her role as Paulette, Elle Wood’s confidant, in the Legally Blonde inspired segment of the music video. Coolidge even sports the same denim outfit she her character wore in the original 2001 film.
new best friend …. thank u, next pic.twitter.com/ahJ4DUd4nJ
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 20, 2018
Elizabeth Gillies
Grande called on Gillies, her former Victorious co-star, to take on the role of Mean Girls protagonist Cady Heron, originally played by Lindsey Lohan. Gillies, wearing an oversized pink polo and auburn wig bore so much resemblance to the original character, that Lohan took to Instagram to give Grande her blessing. (Bonus: Gillies has actually impersonated Lohan before, in a clip recreating a famous scene from The Parent Trap.)
Matt Bennett
Bennett, another one of Grande’s Victorious co-stars, takes on the role of Bring It On love interest Cliff Patone. Bennett made his cameo alongside Grande, a longtime friend, as the two recreated the iconic tooth brushing scene from the movie.
Colleen Ballinger
Ballinger, best known as the YouTube personality Miranda Sings, makes a cameo in the video to spread yet another outlandish rumor about Grande. “One time, on Twitter, I heard Ariana Grande got pregnant, so I got pregnant so we could be pregnant at the same time,” Ballinger, who is also pregnant in real life, says. “Turns out it was just a rumor.”
Gabi DeMartino
DeMartino, famous for her YouTube videos impersonating Grande, played an exaggerated version of herself in her “Thank U, Next” cameo. “Ariana says, ‘Honest to God, knock me out,’ so I decided to punch myself in the face. It was awesome,” DeMartino says.
See the full video below.