The Devil Wears Prada 2 has finally arrived, and it is set for very chic box office takings of over $200m in its first week. Praised as one of the few Hollywood sequels to measure up to its beloved original, the movie sees Meryl Streep reunite with Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci two decades after the original film’s release. The sequel is packed with designer rags, withering put-downs and a slew of celebrity cameos. Surprisingly enough, it mostly works.
When a sequel to the 00s comedy was first announced in 2024, many wondered how it would deal with the slow decline of women’s glossy magazines. Today, some of the best photography is on Instagram, the most rigorous fashion journalism is on Substack and the best styling is in #GRWM TikToks. It is depressing but fitting that Runway magazine is on life support at the opening of the film. A glitzy Met Ball-like gala cannot hide the fact that the brand is in dire straits, with the imperious editor in chief Miranda Priestly (Streep) attempting to keep Runway afloat with social-first content and Gorpcore fashion shoots. As she grimly puts it, “the September issue’s already so thin you could floss with it.”
After being fired from her worthy yet underpaid job writing government exposés, Andy Sachs is brought in to “restore credibility” to Runway, which is amid a PR crisis after accidentally promoting sweatshops. The film handles the death of media deftly – any former or current journalist will cringe with recognition as Andy details the “layoffs, consolidation and downsizing” that has left her jobless. One former co-worker has fallen on such desperate times she is ghost-writing the memoir of Paris Hilton’s chihuahua.
It is impossible not to smile at Andy and Miranda’s reunion, particularly when the veteran editor starts tearing into her former charge. “You should really get that looked at, that condition that causes you to trudge,” Miranda informs Andy of her perfectly normal gait. But it is Tucci’s Nigel that has the funniest scenes with Andy, from initially greeting her with “Look what TJ Maxx dragged in” to another makeover in Runway’s fashion closet. The years have mellowed Miranda, though the ice queen hasn’t fully thawed – or caught up to 2026 political correctness. After seeing one lineup of prospective models, she asks with genuine confusion: “Some of the bodies are very …body positive. But why?”
The acidic humour of the original has been given a dose of Gaviscon, but it is a delight to see Streep in light comedy mode: in one scene set at a garden party, she throws her head back with laughter, slurrily gossips to Andy, and tipsily demands more rosé. While it is hard to feel sorry for Miranda having to fly economy or ditch her chauffeur for Ubers due to budget constraints, the movie is an effective portrait of the character at a crossroads as she fleetingly considers retirement. The first movie showed why “everyone wants to be us”, but the sequel shows the personal cost of maintaining that glamorous facade.
