The director of The Devil Wears Prada 2 has explained why audiences will not see Andy Sachs’ unpopular boyfriend in the long-awaited sequel. Adrian Grenier famously portrayed Nate Cooper, whose relationship with Sachs deteriorated under the strain of her demanding career.
Exclusion from the Sequel
While Sachs has a new love interest in the upcoming film, fans hoping for closure on Cooper’s fate were disappointed when Grenier revealed he was not asked to return. Now, filmmaker David Frankel, 67, has shed light on the decision, telling Entertainment Weekly that he considered including Grenier, 49, in a cameo but was prevented by time constraints.
“I had an idea about sneaking him into a cameo, and, in the end, it was just too late in our production schedule to make it happen,” Frankel said. He added that there simply “wasn’t time” to incorporate Cooper into the story.
Praise for Grenier's Response
Frankel declined to reveal what the cameo would have involved but expressed admiration for Grenier’s Starbucks commercial, which humorously referenced the snub. “I think I’m thrilled that he did a Starbucks commercial, which was really funny and so self-effacing,” Frankel said. “I love the humility and the comedy of it!”
Grenier's Take on the Snub
Grenier previously admitted that being left out was “a disappointment” but remained hopeful about a potential callback for a spinoff. He speculated that “backlash” toward his character’s actions in the original film might have contributed to the decision. “We’re all fans of the movie, whether or not we’re in it,” he said. “Obviously, it was a disappointment that I didn’t get the call to be in the sequel, but I also understand there’s some backlash with Nate, the character, so that might have something to do with it.”
He added: “But I think that just leaves room for a spinoff. Either way, it’s a disappointment. Either way, it leaves room for a beautiful spinoff in which Nate has his own film.”
Character Backlash
Viewers of the 2006 original strongly disliked Nate Cooper, criticising him as unsupportive and self-centred amid his girlfriend’s career struggles. Grenier later acknowledged this perspective, telling Entertainment Weekly in 2021: “I didn’t see some of the subtleties and the nuance of this character and what it represented in the film until the masses came online and started to push against the character and throw him under the bus, and I got flak.”
He continued: “All those memes that came out were shocking to me. It hadn’t occurred to me until I started to really think about it. And perhaps it was because I was as immature as Nate was at the time.” Grenier admitted his character was “very selfish and self-involved” and “wasn’t extending himself to support Andy in her career.” After “time to reflect,” he said he agreed with “the truth in that perspective.”
Plot Recap and Grenier's Career
In the first film, Andy and Nate broke up but reconnected at the end after she quit her job as Miranda Priestly’s assistant. In their final scene, Nate revealed he was moving to Chicago for a new chef job. Following the 2006 release, Grenier starred in Entourage, Clickbait, and other projects, while also pursuing producing, directing, and environmental activism. He now lives on a ranch in Texas with his wife Jordan Roemmele and their two sons, Seiko (2) and Evren (nearly 1).
