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The Devil Wears Prada 2 is a near-perfect blend of nostalgia and newness
Directed by: David Frankel
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opcorn, peanut M&M’s and The Devil Wears Prada, those were the sleepover staples when I was in junior high. Sure, sometimes my friends and I subbed in 13 Going on 30 or Mean Girls for some variety, but we always found our way back to Runway Magazine. It was our absolute favorite, as evidenced by the fact that, one time, we watched it at night and the next morning, turned it on again while eating our pancakes. We couldn’t get enough of the memorable soundtrack, stunning outfits, luxurious locations and quippy lines that we quoted incessantly. Miranda’s classics, of course, ones about cerulean, florals and moving at glacial paces but also Emily’s deeper cuts about cubes of cheese, red-hot pokers and loving her job. Needless to say, I was highly anticipating The Devil Wears Prada 2, equally excited and nervous to see how they were going to continue a story that was so pivotal for me.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 smartly finds a way to get everyone back together quickly. After an opening montage that has delightful parallels to the first film, we discover that Andy (Anne Hathaway) is living her dreams as a “serious journalist.” Right before she wins a prestigious award for one of her pieces, however, she discovers that she along with her whole team has been laid off via text. She needs a new job and fast.
Coincidentally, one becomes available at Runway after the magazine gets dragged for doing a glowing piece on what turns out to be a sketchy fast-fashion brand, putting Miranda’s (Meryl Streep) reputation and big promotion in jeopardy. Irv (Tibor Feldman), the head of Runway’s parent company, offers Andy a Features Editor position and tasks her with helping Miranda and Nigel (Stanley Tucci) clean up the mess. That includes patching things up with angry advertisers, including Dior, where Emily (Emily Blunt) has worked her way up to being a senior executive.
Things get more complicated as power struggles emerge between Irv’s son, Jay (B. J. Novak), and Emily’s new billionaire boyfriend, Benji (Justin Theroux). Everyone has a different vision for the future of Runway, but very few of them benefit the employees who actually work there and the legacy of the brand they’ve worked tirelessly to build. Fashion, journalism and culture is changing as a whole and everyone has to figure out how to work together and adapt, lest they be left behind.
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Streep and Hathaway are as excellent as ever, seamlessly slipping back into their roles as if no time has passed and playing off of each other deliciously. Their characters are consistent with the ones we were introduced to two decades ago, but they aren’t completely frozen. Miranda and Andy’s core essences remain unchanged, but they and their relationship have progressed and evolved in a way that makes sense. It’s not an easy line to walk, but the two Oscar winners do it with ease.
Blunt was the breakout of the first movie, emerging as one of the funniest parts and holding her own just fine alongside a titan like Streep. Her comedy skills have only improved, once again stealing just about every scene she’s in. She earned both my biggest laughs and gasps over the two-hour runtime, full of savage surprises at every turn and a shocking amount of vulnerability beneath her vain, irritable exterior.
I wish the film had delved more deeply into the specifics of what exactly went down between her and Miranda to land them in the positions we find them in, but we get just enough for it all to work.
Integrating new characters is often where sequels stumble, but The Devil Wears Prada (TDWP) 2 nails it when it comes to its fresh-faced Runway employees. Simone Ashley is undoubtedly the standout, taking the fabulous baton from Blunt as Miranda’s first assistant, the snarky Amari. She pays tribute to Blunt’s iconic performance while making the role her own. Caleb Hearon and Helen J. Shen take up Andy’s mantle in their own ways, with Hearon acting as Miranda’s overworked second assistant and Shen as Andy’s eager right-hand woman. They each bring a welcome energy, getting their moments to shine without overshadowing the OGs.
Journalism is currently in a tough place. The rise of AI usage and tech conglomerates downsizing and merging media companies has made it difficult to find and keep a job in the industry. Those who are lucky enough to be employed are facing pressure to get clicks and improve metrics to make advertisers and shareholders happy, even if that comes at the cost of covering stories that matter. TDWP 2 makes this a central part of its plot and handles it with an unexpected amount of nuance and care. While the first film felt like a love letter to fashion, this one feels like a love letter to journalists. (Though that’s not to say that The Devil Wears Prada 2 isn’t full of its fair share of fashion, too. While it trades Paris for Milan, the sense of glamor and feast of cameos remains.)
The movie plays into the way culture has changed in the 20 years since the first film, without getting too cheesy or preachy in either direction, lightly poking fun at Boomers and Gen Z alike. While some characters and plots are obviously inspired by famous figures and events, like Elon Musk and the Bill Gates/Melinda French Gates divorce, it wisely decides not to make anything a shallow one-to-one parody.
For those still craving justice for Nigel two decades after Miranda’s betrayal, I’m pleased to inform you that you will be very happy with the way the film unfolds for him. The film justifies its existence purely for his arc and the full-circle nature of his journey. Tucci is the heart and soul of this film, even catching me off guard by eliciting some well-earned tears.
The only aspect that really doesn’t work is the romance. Something that made the first film so effective was the way that the audience saw Miranda almost entirely from Andy’s point of view. The sequel gives us more scenes of Miranda’s personal life with her husband, Stuart (Kenneth Branagh), which are not only not additive, but take away some of the mystique that makes Miranda such a compelling enigma. The lack of conflict or passion between Miranda and Stuart means their scenes don’t serve much of a purpose, not giving us much new insight into Miranda that we haven’t already inferred through her dynamics with other people. The more interesting choice could have been bringing her now adult twin daughters back, but they are nowhere to be seen.
Andy’s fling with a contractor named Peter (Patrick Brammall) is sweet and charming but lacking real heat or originality. It ends up feeling rather underbaked and forgettable, as if it were thrown in at the last minute. Their scenes are cute, but I found myself antsy to get back to the Runway of it all. The time the movie devotes to developing their relationship would have been better spent focusing on fleshing out more of the workplace happenings.
The chemistry between the returning and new characters of Runway in The Devil Wears Prada 2 is spot-on, making the film feel cohesive, and it successfully tackles crucial issues of our modern era that are relevant for 2026. While there may be one or two too many callbacks to the first film and a couple of unnecessary subplots, the sequel doesn’t rely entirely on nostalgia, nor does it strip away everything that made the original great. Maybe it’s not a perfect balance, but it’s pretty close to it.
– Courtesy: Collider.com
