Film Review: THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2 (2026): A Smart Plot and Memorable Performances Keep This Long-Awaited Sequel Afloat
The Devil Wears Prada 2 Review
The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026) Film Review, a movie directed by David Frankel, written by Aline Brosh McKenna and Lauren Weisberger and starring Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci, Justin Theroux, Simone Ashley, Kenneth Branagh, Lucy Liu, Tracie Thoms, Pauline Chalamet, Caleb Hearon, B.J. Novak, Patrick Brammall, Lady Gaga, Rachel Bloom, Helen J Shen, Amanda Morrow and Jenna Bush Hager.
Director David Frankel’s new sequel to 2006’s The Devil Wears Prada is an interesting look at the publishing world and the fashion industry with Meryl Streep back in top form as the infamous Miranda Priestly. This role suited Streep’s talents twenty years ago and still does. Too bad, the new movie focuses more on Anne Hathaway’s Andy Sachs than on Streep’s Priestly. This film wants to cater to both fans of Streep and fans of Hathaway and steers more towards being a Hathaway movie than a Streep movie. However, the script this time out is really intelligent and has a lot of sharp wit and relatable situations for those who may not be 100% interested in the fashion world the movie presents to audiences.
This film opens with the ironic story of Andy losing her job just as she is receiving an award for her work. The Devil Wears Prada 2 knows the harsh realities of the world of publishing, but the movie also has fun with some of the ideas it plays with here. For example, there is a sequence where Miranda is flying on a plane and is only provided with economy seating. Budget cuts in her career field are hurting her way of life, but Miranda has been living well for some time now. She’s always been a fashion queen and Miranda re-teams with Andy after Andy returns to Runway magazine following a prolonged absence.
Emily Blunt also returns again, too, in The Devil Wears Prada 2 and the actress has fun with her scenes opposite Hathaway’s Andy in this picture. Blunt’s character, Emily, drives the plot of the film and Blunt and Hathaway have a humorous rapport on-screen that is delightful and a bit deranged at the same time, especially given Emily’s secrets in the movie. Rounding out the central cast in this new sequel is Stanley Tucci’s loyal assistant, Nigel, who gets a nice chunk of moments in the film to shine.
Emily and Andy have a history and the new movie probably hopes you’ve seen the first film to understand the dynamics of the new film’s clever story line. Besides Tucci’s character, the men in the new film are given precious little to do. It’s as if men only exist in the new sequel to fuel the female characters’ motivations. Justin Theroux gets a fair amount of screen time in the new picture as a character, Benji Barnes, but it’s clear this is the women characters’ film to own even though Tucci gets some priceless moments as he greets Andy with a humorous nod to TJ Maxx in one of them.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is at its best in scenes such as one when it shows the two main characters (Streep and Hathaway) outside of the States as Madonna’s song, “Vogue,” plays on the soundtrack (as promised from this film’s first trailers). Lady Gaga gets to make a cameo here as the superstar performs in one of the most memorable parts of the new film.
Don’t forget The Devil Wears Prada 2 is making a bold statement on the nature of fashion and journalism in today’s ever-changing world. Miranda reminds Andy that people must actually read what Andy writes in order for Andy to have relevance in the world of publishing. As Andy comes up with a profitable idea to chronicle the experience of working for Miranda, the plot thickens as an offer for over a quarter million dollars arises for Andy to write a tell-all book about Miranda.
There’s ultimately not a lot of gritty realism in the grand scheme of things, though, because that wouldn’t be as entertaining as watching Blunt and Hathaway go through their comic paces in their respective roles here. When Streep is on-screen, she’s at her best, but Hathaway and Blunt tend to steal the spotlight of the new sequel much more than they should.
Andy talks about her frozen eggs which are saved for her potential kids at one point when Emily shares information on her two children. The Devil Wears Prada 2 knows the single life of working professional women in America today and Hathaway is on-point for much of her extended screen time that she is a part of in the new sequel. Streep certainly gets her moments to steal the spotlight and the actress takes the opportunity at every turn to cherish the role of the unreasonable boss from hell who gets a bit of a soft side in this follow-up movie.
It’s a little hard to enjoy every single moment of The Devil Wears Prada 2. That’s because the movie takes too many swings at topics that border on being extremely difficult subject matter for a comedy and the movie only scores about 70% of the time with its analysis and suggestions regarding the state of the publishing industry today. Some shots on the streets of New York City are quite memorable, though, and give the city its own presence in the characters’ lives.
If The Devil Wears Prada 2 is an entertaining way to spend some time in the movie theater, it can also make one wish that Miranda had the meat on her character’s bones that could have carried Streep to another Oscar nomination. Instead, Frankel’s movie is a balancing act as the two main characters (Streep and Hathaway) set realistic goals for themselves which are well-thought out as the sequel comes to an uneventful, but pretty realistic, conclusion.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is the type of movie that has many character actors peppered in. You’ll see Lucy Liu, Kenneth Branagh and B.J. Novak all appear here and they all try to hog up some scenes in whatever capacity these stars are showcased in. It seems the real scene-stealer is Helen J Shen’s educated assistant who brings Andy just as much coffee, probably, as she does work itself. Starbucks cups are featured in great abundance in The Devil Wears Prada 2, an enjoyable rendering of the struggle for success in an entertainment-saturated world that no longer exists the way it once did.
Rating: 7/10
Leave your thoughts on this The Devil Wears Prada 2 review and the film below in the comments section. Readers seeking more film reviews can visit our Movie Review Page, our Movie Review Twitter Page, and our Movie Review Facebook Page. Readers seeking to support this type of content can visit our Patreon Page and become one of FilmBook’s patrons. Want up-to-the-minute notifications? FilmBook staff members publish articles by Email, Mobile App, Google News, Apple News, Feedly, Twitter, Faceboo
Related Articles
