The Devil Wears Prada 2 Review: The Devil Doesn't Do Much At All
· BCPosted in: 20th Century Studios, Kaitlyn Booth, Movies, Review | Tagged: the devil wears prada 2
The Devil Wears Prada 2 Review: The Devil Doesn't Do Much At All
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is going to follow the fate of so many other legacy sequels: it's likely to fade into the background, and no one will talk about it in a couple of months.
Published Wed, 29 Apr 2026 11:03:10 -0500
by Kaitlyn Booth
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Article Summary
- The Devil Wears Prada 2 struggles as a legacy sequel, delivering a somber story that rarely matches the original’s spark.
- Rather than leaning into comedy, The Devil Wears Prada 2 centers on layoffs, AI, and the decline of print journalism.
- Meryl Streep is underused, while Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, and Stanley Tucci bring energy that keeps the film watchable.
- The Devil Wears Prada 2 has strong performances and great fashion, but its heavy tone may keep it from lasting long.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is going to hit a lot harder for any journalists in the crowd, but even for everyone else, it's a middling, unfunny, and somber affair where the devil does nothing at all.
Director: David Frankel
Summary: As Miranda Priestly nears retirement, she reunites with Andy Sachs to face off against her former assistant turned rival: Emily Charlton.
In reality, it was probably impossible for a sequel to The Devil Wears Prada to be as good as the first one because the first one was so much bigger than the sum of its parts. There aren't many pieces of media where someone knows a joke or reference, but there is a chance they haven't seen the original film. However, if you say, "Florals? For Spring? Groundbreaking," almost everyone is going to know what you're talking about. Maybe The Devil Wears Prada 2 wasn't ever trying to be the first film, and in many ways, it is doing something completely different. Still, the dissonance between what is on screen and the impact feels off, especially if you're a member of the media.
We've known for a while now that The Devil Wears Prada 2 would focus on Miranda's (Meryl Streep) efforts to move Not-Vogue Runway forward in an era when print journalism feels like it is circling the drain. Often, the difference between audiences and critics can be explained with a restaurant metaphor; if you only eat at one restaurant a year and that restaurant is Wendy's, then Wendy's was the best restaurant you ate at this year.
Basically, critics see more movies than average moviegoers, so they tend to come down harder on movies that are just fine because you see just fine a couple times a month. This time, however, the difference will be much more hyperspecific. While I walked out of this movie feeling like I was watching an "in memorium" or a flash-forward to my inevitable future, the public won't be hit with that crushing sense of dread.
That crushing sense of dread follows the entire film, and it absolutely crushes anything that could be comedic. The characters are still fun to watch, and they are well executed, but our devil in the title barely does anything at all. We don't get to see a new, confident Andy (Anne Hathaway) going up against a fiery Miranda, baring her teeth and refusing to allow AI to replace her writers. Instead, we see a confident Andy going up against a Miranda who seems weirdly passive about the whole thing, just letting it all happen.
The "devil" in The Devil Wears Prada 2 is not Miranda Priestly; it's corporate consolidation, budget cuts, layoffs, and the removal of the human element of journalism, replaced by AI. No matter how scary Miranda could be, nothing is more terrifying than staring down the end of the long tunnel that could be the industry you've dedicated your entire life to. It's depressing as these people spend a decent portion of the movie wondering if the entire magazine is about to collapse underneath them and they're all going to get laid off, yet again. Is she wearing the Chanel boots? Does it matter if she just signed a lease for an apartment she might not be able to afford if everything collapses in on itself?
Now, this sense of dread might hit someone in the industry much harder than it does the general public, and it'll be interesting to see if others are affected similarly. If that dread isn't there, maybe the jokes hit a bit better, because you can actually see the levity in the situation. There are other elements here that work; as someone who knows nothing about fashion, the outfits were fabulous, and I want about half of them [she says, writing in an oversized t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants]. All of the actors do a great job of bringing these characters back to life, even if Streep is criminally underutilized. Emily Blunt's character goes in an interesting direction, and Stanley Tucci remains one of the best parts of anything he is in. The new cast doesn't make much of an impression, but Andy's new love interest, Peter, played by Patrick Brammall, isn't a loser like Nate was in the previous film. We love it when a girl knows her worth.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is going to follow the fate of so many other legacy sequels: it's likely to fade into the background, and no one will talk about it in a couple of months. Maybe, if the entire institution of journalism doesn't collapse and burn in the next couple of years, people will be able to look back at this with more levity, like looking back at films about natural disasters once all the rubble has been cleared away. Now, however, too many parts of this are hitting too close to home. For a film that very much appears like it was supposed to be a love letter to journalists, it feels more like a eulogy.
The Devil Wears Prada 2
Review by Kaitlyn Booth
5.5/10
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is going to hit a lot harder for any journalists in the crowd, but even for everyone else, it's a middling, unfunny, and somber affair where the devil does nothing at all.
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