Named for a marquee before she could even sing, Reneé Rapp grew up in Huntersville, North Carolina, splitting her time between the varsity golf team and the theater program. Her instinct for making audiences feel a song carried her from the Jimmy Awards to taking over as Regina George on Broadway at just 19, handed the role by Tina Fey herself.

But the polished pop-star mold never fit. Rapp has spoken openly about the anxiety and eating disorder the Mean Girls Broadway run intensified, her pivot to television, and her reclamation of the character in the 2024 film. This episode traces how she traded the PR-perfect image for raw authenticity, building an uncancellable bond with her audience on her own terms.

• How a childhood name and varsity golf shaped an unlikely path to Broadway stardom
• Why the Mean Girls stage run turned ...