Meryl Streep is funnier than ever

The Devil Wears Prada 2 with Meryl Streep review and star rating: ★★★★

The fashion got us hooked, but it was the memes that helped The Devil Wears Prada endure for almost two decades. Asides such as “Florals for spring? Groundbreaking” and “Everybody wants to be us,” delivered by Meryl Streep’s monstrous editor Miranda Priestly, have become iconic. At the same time, her assistants Andy Sachs, played by Anne Hathaway, and Emily Charlton, played by Emily Blunt, made us feel part of the story: after all, haven’t we all suffered under a boss like Priestly?

She existed in some mystical ether – she had to, for legal reasons. Vogue magazine editor Anna Wintour historically denied any connection to the character, even though the original book’s author Lauren Weisberger admitted she was an inspiration. That was until Vogue’s sales declined, and this year Wintour has appeared in promotional skits alongside Streep. So cemented has the partnership become that one Vogue editor joked at The Devil Wears Prada 2’s premiere that there’s been “a lot of buzz for this documentary.” 

Fears the sting would have been taken out of Priestly by Vogue’s allyship are soon allayed: Streep’s performance retains the bite while transplanting her character into a new era. 

The Devil Wears Prada 2: brimming with heartfelt moments

Priestly is – quelle surprise – battling the demise of print. Her clout is shredded by falling magazine sales and the proliferation of digital media. Rather than commanding any designer she wants for the cover, she’s now at the whim of the advertisers. Andy Sachs returns into Priestly’s orbit as a senior editor and Emily Charlton now works in the more profitable world of retail. 

Screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna has a firm grasp of where these women would be today. Sachs is growing tired of the fight for work and while Charlton may have landed on her feet, she’s still emotionally vulnerable. Priestly has softened a little – which is fair enough. Don’t people tend to mellow as they age?

She is still as savagely cutting as ever, which feels appropriate given The Devil Wears Prada 2’s release coincides with the ‘end’ of woke culture. In one hilarious moment Priestly – to the horror of her new assistant – describes models in a photoshoot as “milling around like starving goats in a methadone clinic”. 

Blunt – given serious fangs this time around – is equally commanding. She gets more of the satire this time around, but underneath the professional steeliness she’s still so green you want to give her a hug.

Meryl Streep shines

Hathaway’s glow up as an award-winning journalist is the least interesting storyline. However, if Priestly was going to soften for anyone, it would be this grown-up Sachs, whose sense of professionalism remains her priority over conventional domesticity. Her children, she jokes, are frozen up the road in the clinic. In new roles, The Office US’s BJ Novac turns your stomach as slimy tech mogul Jay Ravitz, but Justin Theroux has more meat as “rich and stupid” tech billionaire Benji Barnes. Lucy Liu is robbed of screentime as his enigmatic wife Sasha. 

It occasionally veers too much into sentimentality. Stanley Tucci’s Nigel, still second-in-command to Priestly, dishes out the comfy nostalgia but when Priestly gets introspective and asks him “have I taken you for granted?” it’s one of the few moments that doesn’t feel true to character. 

If the romantic storylines feel a little paint-by-numbers, The Devil Wears Prada 2 is most affecting as a touching homage to the workplace. A poignant loveletter to the girlboss. When Priestly talks about work, you listen. “People should know there’s a cost,” she says when she and Sachs talk about corporate backstabbing and the morality of success. “But boy I just love working, don’t you?” 

The frocks, dare I say it, feel almost superfluous, which is testament to the power of these characters. I’d be astonished if The Devil Wears Prada 3 isn’t in production this time next year.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 release date

The Devil Wears Prada 2 is in UK and US cinemas from 1 May. It is not yet announced for streaming services.