The long-awaited sequel to The Devil Wears Prada is strutting into theaters Friday — and reviews are already pouring in.
Coming 20 years after the 2006 dramedy, the new film follows the original, which was adapted from Lauren Weisberger’s 2003 novel of the same name. Weisberger famously drew inspiration from her time working as former Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour’s assistant. The first movie starred Anne Hathaway as aspiring journalist Andy Sachs, who lands a job assisting Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep), the formidable editor-in-chief of top fashion magazine Runway. As Andy struggles to survive Miranda’s demands, she also tries to balance her personal life. The film grossed $327 million worldwide and became a lasting pop culture phenomenon.
Hathaway and Streep return for the sequel, alongside Emily Blunt as Miranda’s other assistant Emily Charlton and Stanley Tucci as Nigel, Runway’s art director. Adrian Grenier, who played Andy’s boyfriend Nate, notably does not return. New cast additions include Justin Theroux, Kenneth Branagh, Simone Ashley, Lucy Liu, Patrick Brammall, Caleb Hearon, Helen J. Shen, Pauline Chalamet, B.J. Novak, Conrad Ricamora, Rachel Bloom and a wave of surprise cameos.
The 2026 follow-up centers on Miranda and Andy as they attempt to restore Runway’s relevance in the digital media era while confronting the decline of print publishing. They turn to Emily — now an executive at a luxury fashion house — for help. Original director David Frankel and screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna also return.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 currently holds a 74 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes as of Wednesday. Below, see what critics are saying about the film.
“Hathaway is effortlessly charming in the role,” The Hollywood Reporter’s chief film critic David Rooney wrote in his review. “All four leads step back into their characters’ shoes with ease and swan around in fabulous looks. But would Miranda really wear that bonkers Dries Van Noten tassel jacket? I’m not convinced. In the end, the movie is less a workplace comedy than a clothes horse, elevated by a classy cast.”
He added of early backlash the film is receiving: “A promo clip stirred backlash from some East Asians offended by the perceived stereotype of Andy’s assistant Jin Chao — academic over-achiever, tech-savvy, socially awkward, nerdy fashion sense. Whether that will hurt the film in some markets is hard to say. In any case, it’s no fault of appealing Broadway recruit Helen J. Shen in the role. In truth, it’s difficult to imagine anyone being terribly upset by anything in The Devil Wears Prada 2. It’s pretty and polished and as featherweight as a fawning magazine puff piece; it will doubtless make a fortune.”
Rolling Stone’s David Fear addressed the changes in media. “For journalists, this is a horror movie, no matter how stylish and dazzling you dress it up. Every victory is given the full Prada treatment and is still explicitly stated as being Pyrrhic. No combination of stilettos and old-fashioned shoe-leather can temper the fact that integrity, talent, hard work, and a dedication to treating everything from fashion to the moving pictures with seriousness is in perpetual danger of extinction.”
The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw wrote, “The movie takes us through new versions of the beats from the first film: Andy dishing with Nigel in the cafeteria; Nigel picking out something for the ungrateful Andy to wear, this time for a trip to Miranda’s place in the Hamptons; Andy going to a fashion mecca (Milan); Andy frantically engaging in backstairs shenanigans to protect Miranda from some wicked corporate coup. And for the DWP connoisseurs, there’s even an outing for Andy’s awful blue polyblend sweater that Nigel found to be such a windup back in the day. This is good-natured, buoyant entertainment. It’s wearing well.”
USA Today’s Brian Truitt noted a few things that he viewed didn’t work in the sequel: “What this Devil doesn’t need, though, is to run back so many plot points and so much narrative direction from the first film. It’s enjoyable seeing Streep and Hathaway vamp off each other, but Andy having to work this hard to win Miranda over again just feels repetitive. And the third act of the film feels way too close to the OG as well,” Truitt wrote in his review. “While Hathaway and Tucci have a warm chemistry that they’re able to rekindle, the real throwback that works best is Andy and Emily’s relationship. There’s bonding, butting heads and everything in between as the movie works to develop Blunt’s character a little more, and it makes up for the stuff that doesn’t work. Like a forced relationship angle with Andy and nice-guy Australian contractor Peter (Brammall). He’s a forgettable addition whereas Theroux is a standout as Blunt’s hilariously awkward, AI-loving tech bro love interest.”
Empire’s Beth Webb praised the main cast’s performances. “Hathaway maintains plucky affability despite her character becoming more world-weary, while Blunt’s comedic timing and flashes of vulnerability save the film from feeling too serious. Tucci as Miranda’s stalwart right-hand man Nigel returns as the pocket-square-adorned shoulder to cry on, though does get a few welcome moments to shine. Around them, the film’s world remains a taffeta-draped playground through which the characters showcase traffic-stopping designer ensembles, reminding us why they risk it all for Runway. And at its epicentre, Streep lets us a little deeper into Miranda’s psyche without losing that magnetic elusiveness. Her power survives intact, even if she’s not given a worthy adversary to unleash it upon.
The New Yorker’s Justin Chang wrote, “The Devil Wears Prada 2 is selling a truckload of preposterous goods, but it sells them awfully well, with unfeigned assurance, conviction, and the appropriate ratio of cynicism to hope. As industries and their titans are brought low, this film suggests, the best we can ask for is the satisfaction of doing good work and the lasting friendships we may forge along the way. That’s all.”
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