“The Devil Wears Prada 2” (2026) is the rare perfect sequel that deviates from the source material and finds some optimism without pulling punches about how things have changed for the worse twenty years later. Journalism is dying, and even successful journalists like Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) are losing their jobs. Fortunately, her old employer, the magazine “Runway,” has run into a scandal, and they need a journalist with integrity to bolster their image so Andy gets a job as features editor, but it is news to editor-in-chief Miranda Priestley (Meryl Streep) and her right hand man, Nigel (Stanley Tucci). Even they are not immune to the changing landscape, which has put Emily (Emily Blunt) on top and in a position to tell them what to do. Can the trio remain an oasis and hold the line for preserving the greatest triumphs of humanity without giving into the soulless bottom line and tasteless imitators?
When I rewatched “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006), I said that the sequel needed to change its energy to be successful, and it did. Not one character is unscathed at the start of this film, which can be dressed up with some elevated concepts about the corporate dystopia and can be dressed down as pretty people wearing pretty clothes in pretty places. Andy has kept up with her long-time friend, Lily (Tracie Thoms), who still works in a gallery. Andy has plenty of new ones too, fellow freshly laid off coworkers, like NY Yankees fan, Mack (Larry Mitchell), who felt as if part of his role got abridged in editing, and Tessa (Rachel Bloom), who suggests that Andy get a big payday and write a tell all book about Miranda, an idea that Andy periodically revisits as she realizes that Runway is not as secure as she thought.
While Miranda is still queen of the scathing, observant and accurate one-liners, and Nigel is still the unruffled faithful man at her side, they have taken some hits as well. Their budget is a shadow of its former self. They are more supplicants at the feet of their advertisers than taste makers receiving tribute from their subjects. Cue Emily, who has them on their heels and dancing to her tune because she works for an advertiser and is the belle of the ball dating a tech bro who feels like a mix of Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos (Justin Theroux, who was hopefully uglied up for the part and verges on unrecognizable). A lot of “The Devil Wears Prada 2” shows the still fabulous and fashionable Miranda getting upbraided and taking it on the chin without losing a step or her dignity, but Andy is alarmed that she has lost some of her fight and is not rounding curbs as she used to. Irv Ravitz (Tibor Feldman) is still the boss of Elias-Clarke Publications, but his heir apparent, Jay (B. J. Novak, “The Office”), is in the wings, and he has a different style, which does not bode well for the old guard. Side note: Paul (George C. Wolfe) makes a cameo!
“The Devil Wears Prada 2” took the pulse of the nation and is less tone deaf than the average elite. It is a brilliant move to show how everyone is suffering from economic anxiety, job insecurity and the enshittification of America to offset all the gorgeousness such as Andy randomly ditching her old apartment for some upscaled luxury digs, which apparently comes with a new boyfriend, Peter (Patrick Brammall). There is chemistry, but more importantly, he likes reading her pre-Runway articles, i.e. the dry stuff. While there is only one snog, he is approved. Even Miranda gets a boy toy with the latest Mr. Priestley, Stuart (Kenneth Branagh, who is eleven years younger than Streep), a member of a quartet who seems to accept her wholly. No glimpse of the twins. There is plenty of fan service with call backs to the first movie: a banner references the spring florals line (if you know, you know), a half bagel smeared with cream cheese, Madonna’s “Vogue,” a street vendor selling two cerulean blue belts, the scary visit to Miranda’s home staircase, and lots more.
There is also something new to appeal to the newcomers. Comedian Caleb Hearon appears as Charlie, one of Miranda assistants. Lady Gaga makes an appearance as herself with all new songs: “Runway,” “Shape of a Woman,” and “Glamorous Life.” The stunning Simone Ashley of “Bridgerton” fame plays Amari Mari, Miranda’s first assistant and PC police so Miranda does not get cancelled. Where there is a tech bro, there is often a tech bro’s ex-wife, and though “Rosemead” (2025) was an amazing film, it is nice to see Lucy Liu glammed up again as Sasha, a wealthy woman with an unwanted spotlight trying to figure out how to make a difference. The film never reveals who her latest love interest is. Andy gets a sensible assistant, Yale grad Jin Chao (Helen J. Shen).
If you liked the first film, you will like the second. Director David Frankel and writer Aline Brosh McKenna return in fine form understanding how to extrapolate how these characters would change with the times, what to update in their dynamic with each other and how much to keep from the original that would still work today. The pace is not quite as hurried, but it is still fast paced. There is still plenty of tourism porn with gorgeous skylines of Manhattan and Milan. Andy is still trying to impress Miranda, but McKenna shows how she is also still like Miranda with Andy’s rough edge expressing disappointment in others and cloaking her opportunistic ways as charity. Nigel still speaks words of wisdom, but this time, his words are not just specific to Andy but can be applied to everyone feeling a little beaten up at their job, even if they love it. He also gets a storyline about his reluctance to jockey for a better position or fight like Andy. Of course, he still gives a makeover to Andy. Miranda withholds her approval, but the story’s goal is for Miranda and Andy to finally work together to save the world one magazine issue at a time. Emily is not diluted. Unlike other villains who are defanged in the sequel, Emily is amped up, but “The Devil Wears Prada 2” still finds a way for them to coexist without losing her in the fix.
Because at the end of the day, “The Devil Wears Prada 2” knows that it is more about these four faves than the story, and this flick will have you begging for a sequel. Who knew that these four would be so easy to relate to? It is just a bonus that it cloaked a magazine devoted to excessive, inaccessible consumerism as a bastion of journalism and the arts holding the line for all humankind. If you can’t buy that, then please check out “Steal This Story, Please!” (2025), which is the real deal. Or better yet, make it the most unlikely double feature so you can have guilt-free fun.
