Check out these iconic '90s and '00s movies-turned-stage musicals in London

From Mean Girls to The Devil Wears Prada to Mrs Doubtfire, it's a fantastic time to catch your favourite film reborn as a London musical sensation.

Marianka Swain
Marianka Swain

How fetch! It’s a total nostalgia fest in London theatre, with amazing musical adaptations of our favourite '90s and '00s films coming to the stage. Basically, if you watched a movie at a sleepover in your teens and fell in love with it, you can now see a fab new musical theatre version of it in the West End.

From Mean Girls and The Devil Wears Prada to Elf and Mrs. Doubtfire, there’s a blockbuster load of fab film-to-stage transfers in town. We could see even more coming soon: a workshop of a 13 Going On 30 musical just took place, and a Burlesque musical is opening in Manchester next summer.

So, gird your loins and prepare to go back in time via these great '90s and '00s movies that have been turned into London shows.

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Mean Girls - LT - 1200

Mean Girls, Savoy Theatre

Get in, loser – we’re going to Mean Girls! The hit comedy film became a Broadway musical in 2018, adapted by Tina Fey, Jeff Richmond, and Nell Benjamin. Now, that musical version is heading to the big screen for a 2024 release. Next year will also sees the stage musical finally making its UK premiere.

Mean Girls will run at the Savoy Theatre from June 2024, directed by Casey Nicholaw, with the cast yet to be announced. We can’t wait to see who’ll play these iconic roles of Cady Heron, Regina George, and the Plastics. Just remember: If you book for a Wednesday, wear pink.

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Mrs Doubtfire - LT - 1200

Mrs. Doubtfire, Shaftesbury Theatre

We’ve got one 90s icon already installed in the West End, thanks to the fabulous musical adaptation of the Robin Williams-led movie Mrs. Doubtfire. Everyone’s favourite Scottish nanny is now a London star in this funny and heart-warming celebration of family.

Jerry Zaks’s brilliant production features Gabriel Vick as the divorced dad and out-of-work actor who goes to extremes to see his kids. It’s the film as you remember it, with some clever adds and tweaks – like turning that farcical dinner scene into a dramatic flamenco number. Get booking now, dearies.

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Elf, Dominion Theatre

Another family favourite is in town, too – this time, all the way from the North Pole. Yes, the popular musical adaptation of 2003 Will Ferrell film Elf is back in the West End, telling the story of a human who accidentally stowed away in Santa’s sack and is now seeking his real father in New York.

Matthew Wolfenden stars as the titular “elf,” Buddy, alongside Georgina Castle, Tom Chambers, Rebecca Lock, and Kim Ismay. The Elf musical is a fun-packed adventure that will definitely get you in the spirit — after all, the best way to spread Christmas cheer is by singing loud for all to hear.

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The Devil Wears Prada, Dominion Theatre

Are you ready for the most stylish musical of all to strut its stuff in London? The legendary 2006 movie The Devil Wears Prada – starring Meryl Streep as formidable magazine editor Miranda Priestly and Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt as her harassed assistants – is now a fashionable stage hit.

Featuring a score by Elton John and Shaina Taub, a book by Kate Wetherhead, and direction by Jerry Mitchell, the musical, which premiered in Chicago, is coming to the Dominion Theatre in October 2024. Get a front-row seat at this unmissable runway show. That's all.

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Cruel Intentions: The ’90s Musical, The Other Palace

Does anything say '90s quite like Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair, and Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy gone bad!) starring in a Manhattan rich-kid remake of Les Liaisons Dangereuses? Happily, this indelible movie is now a cult musical, too, coming to London via New York and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Watch the warped step-siblings Sebastian and Kathryn flirt, spar, and make sexy bets about the virtuous new girl, Annette. This run of the musical at The Other Palace, which features an incredible jukebox score with throwback hits like “Bittersweet Symphony,” “Torn,” “Genie in a Bottle,” “No Scrubs,” and “Bye Bye Bye,” marks the film’s 25th anniversary.

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The Lion King - 1200 - LT

The Lion King, Lyceum Theatre

It was 1994 when Disney’s animation first hit our cinema screens, introducing now-classic Elton John and Tim Rice songs like “Circle of Life,” “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King,” “Hakuna Matata,” and “Can You Feel the Love Tonight.” Julie Taymor’s inventive stage adaptation followed in 1997 and is still a West End family favourite.

Follow Simba as he struggles with his destiny: to become king and rule the Pride Lands. The African wildlife and setting are beautifully brought to life with jaw-dropping puppetry, making The Lion King a magical first theatre experience for young audiences – and a nostalgic treat for older ones, too.

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Sister Act - 1200 - LT

Sister Act, Dominion Theatre

Hallelujah! Sister Act is back in town. The 1992 movie starred Whoopi Goldberg as a lounge singer and murder witness who hides out in a convent and turns their choir into a sensation – perfect fare for a stage musical.

Featuring roof-raising songs by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater, the theatrical version first played in the West End in 2009, and was recently revived to great acclaim. Happily, that production is playing at the Dominion in spring 2024, with Beverley Knight and Alexandra Burke sharing the lead role.

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Moulin Rouge! The Musical - 1200 - LT - 080322

Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Piccadilly Theatre

Yes, you can-can-can get a blast of '00s entertainment at the spectacular West End staging of Baz Luhrmann’s jukebox movie musical, which starred Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. This Tony Award-winning production plunges you into the title nightclub, complete with its iconic elephant and windmill.

Follow the doomed lovers Christian and Satine, the idealistic bohemians, the possessive duke, and the canny Moulin Rouge owner Harold Zidler in this hedonistic whirlwind. Moulin Rouge! The Musical packs in more than 70 songs from David Bowie, Madonna, Beyoncé, Rihanna, the Rolling Stones, and more, plus iconic numbers from the film like "El Tango de Roxanne."

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Top image credit: Mrs. Doubtfire in the West End. (Photo by Manuel Harlan)

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