Devil Wears Prada Secrets More Groundbreaking Than Florals for Spring

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In fashion, everything truly does come back in style. 

Everyone’s talking about The Devil Wears Prada again! With the upcoming sequel, the original movie and its stars are back in the spotlight – even if predicting spring fashion or the popularity of cerulean blue remains a bit of a cliché.

Although it took a long time to happen, most people are excited about a sequel to the 2006 comedy starring Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Emily Blunt.

Including Blunt’s own family. 

Emily Blunt recently shared with TopMob News that her daughters, Hazel, 12, and Violet, 9, watched the original movie for the first time about a year ago, mostly because their friends were really excited about it.

Emily Blunt said her husband, John Krasinski, is a huge fan of the original film – he’s seen it around 75 times, she admitted – so everyone was really excited about the project.

The filming trip to Italy was special because it allowed Hazel and Violet to spend extra time with their cousins, Matteo, 11, and Emilia, 8 – the children of Stanley Tucci and his wife, Felicity Blunt, who also worked on the shoot.

According to Tucci, who spoke with TopMob News, the two are very close friends, and it felt strange when their personal relationship mixed with their work.

Meryl Streep was happy to connect with her fellow actors, especially after really immersing herself in the demanding role of Miranda Priestly the first time around.

During the first read-through of the script, Tracie Thoms, who played Lily – the honest and supportive best friend to Andy Sachs – spoke so softly that everyone had to strain to hear her, she told TopMob News in 2021.

Thoms recalled that she barely glanced at Anne, only mentioning her sweater with a dismissive comment – something about it being ‘hideous’ from Casual Corner. He said he could feel Anne visibly deflate next to him, as if deeply hurt.

Hathaway shared at the New York premiere on April 20th that while Streep is wonderful to work with, the cast might have performed even better if they hadn’t been so relaxed and in awe of her. She felt they could have been a bit more focused and confident if they weren’t quite so comfortable around Streep.

Honestly, after putting everything I had into helping make the first movie a success – a real huge sacrifice, as Anne Hathaway put it – she just decided she was done. She gathered the cast and basically said, ‘Okay, you all are on your own now!’ It was a bit of a shock, but she felt she’d done her part.

She was definitely curious about how well she still embodied the character. However, revisiting Miranda Priestly’s iconic, designer-filled wardrobe – all those Valentinos, Diors, and Pradas – was more than just a nostalgic trip with her former colleagues.

The Oscar-winning actor recently told Vogue they were drawn to the business side of the industry—the responsibility of supporting so many jobs and keeping a large organization running smoothly.

The magazine world has changed a lot in the last two decades, and I was curious to see how this publication would adapt. With the industry falling apart and established institutions losing their footing, it’s hard to know what’s even happening anymore, so I wondered what direction they’d take.

You can stop asking others about the movie! We have exclusive, fascinating details from the original cast that you can read at your own speed.

Even before the book The Devil Wears Prada was published, a movie adaptation was already being planned. Fox executives were impressed by the first 100 pages and a summary, which were enough to convince them to buy the rights. As Carla Hacken, a former Fox executive, explained to Variety in 2016, she was the first person at the studio to read it and immediately recognized the character of Miranda Priestly as a truly memorable villain. She recalled that the studio quickly moved to secure the rights to the book.

Even before the book became a New York Times bestseller in 2003, efforts were underway to adapt it for the screen. However, after four different writers tried to create a straightforward adaptation, Aline Brosh McKenna was brought in to write a new version. Her focus shifted to the compromises women often make to advance their careers in the competitive world of fashion magazines. “I wrote a first draft quite quickly—in about a month,” McKenna explained. “Then I revised it based on feedback from everyone involved.”

Creating the story for the film presented challenges, particularly when it came to getting people in the fashion industry to share information. According to author McKenna, many were hesitant to speak for fear of being ostracized by Anna Wintour and Vogue. One anonymous source even told her the characters were portrayed as too kind, pointing out that people in that world don’t have time for niceties. McKenna then revised the script to make the characters more driven and less agreeable.

Director David Frankel told Entertainment Weekly that Anna Wintour’s influence created some challenges finding filming locations. The Met Ball meant the Metropolitan Museum wasn’t available, and Bryant Park—then the regular home of New York Fashion Week—was also off-limits.

We even looked at some famous apartment buildings for Miranda’s place, but the building committees wouldn’t allow us to film there. Finally, a producer friend, Wendy Finerman, let us borrow a five-story townhouse on the Upper East Side.

Bethenny Frankel shared that the production designer, Jess Gonchor, secretly visited Anna Wintour’s office at Vogue to study it. He recreated it so accurately in the movie that, according to Frankel, Wintour immediately redecorated her real office after the film’s release.

The costumes for the movie also proved difficult. At first, no well-known designers would offer clothing, as they were afraid of upsetting Anna Wintour, Frankel explained to EW.

The film’s incredible wardrobe was crafted by renowned costume designer Patricia Field. She gathered around 150 items from designers like Donna Karan, Zac Posen, Rick Owens, and even Prada, carefully creating a distinct look for Meryl Streep’s character, Miranda Priestly, that differed from Anna Wintour. As Streep joked, “Everything was borrowed, so we had to be extra careful – no spaghetti at lunch!” because any stains would make the clothes unreturnable.

Anna Wintour seems to have a good sense of humor about everything. Meryl Streep spoke with the editor-in-chief of Vogue for the magazine’s 125th anniversary issue, discussing her role as Katherine Graham in the 2017 film The Post. When asked about the most difficult character she’d ever played, Streep started to answer, but Wintour playfully interrupted, saying with a laugh, “No, no! We’re not going there, Meryl.”

Wintour actually did see the movie—the same screening as her previous assistant, Weisberger. She later explained to 60 Minutes that while it was entertaining, the film wasn’t an accurate portrayal of life at the magazine.

When it came time to film The Devil Wears Prada 2, Wintour even stopped by to lend her critical eye. 

Meryl Streep was the only actress the studio considered for the role of Miranda, according to studio VP Hacken, who told Variety they didn’t even think about anyone else. Hacken admitted, “I just kept hoping it would be Meryl.” She was so thrilled when Streep’s agent called to say the actress had read the script and would meet with the director that she briefly put the agent on hold to celebrate. “I was yelling with excitement in my office!”

Meryl Streep explained to Entertainment Weekly that she admired the character’s strength and refusal to compromise herself. She appreciated that the character didn’t shy away from her flaws, and that she didn’t try to be likable to get what she wanted—something Streep’s friend, Carrie Fisher, playfully called ‘being overly accommodating.’ Streep noted that this character simply didn’t engage in that kind of behavior.

Before agreeing to the role, Meryl Streep did something very characteristic of the character she would play – Miranda Priestly. Even though she’d already won two Oscars and received eleven more nominations, she wasn’t used to negotiating a higher salary. However, this time, she confidently asked for more money.

She told Variety that the initial offer felt a little low – not necessarily insulting, but not quite a fair reflection of how much she contributed to the project. After she was prepared to walk away, they increased the offer significantly. She was 55 years old and realized, quite late in life, how to effectively negotiate for herself.

Streep also requested specific scenes to avoid portraying Miranda as a simple stereotype. She wanted to show Miranda’s expertise in fashion – specifically, the moment she explains the significance of Andy’s cerulean sweater – and a more vulnerable side, shown in a private hotel room scene where she’s stripped of her usual composure.

Meryl Streep actually came up with the idea for Miranda Priestly’s white hair, showing up to a meeting with the studio head sporting the icy look. Director David Frankel told EW that Streep fully embodied the character during that meeting – the studio executives simply looked into her eyes and didn’t need to discuss the hair at all.

As a huge fan of The Devil Wears Prada, I always knew Anne Hathaway was amazing in the role, but I was shocked to learn just how much she had to fight for it! She actually revealed on RuPaul’s Drag Race that she was the ninth actress they considered! It makes me appreciate her performance even more, knowing she really had to prove herself – maybe even more than Andy Sachs had to work for Miranda Priestly!

I was so thrilled to hear Anne Hathaway didn’t even have to audition, but she definitely had to work for the role! She told Variety it took patience, and she even described a whole campaign, including writing ‘hire me’ in the sand of the director’s zen garden! When she finally found out she got the part, she was literally putting on a shirt with friends over when she burst out of her bedroom, half-dressed, yelling, ‘I got The Devil Wears Prada! I got The Devil Wears Prada!’ It was such a fun story to hear!

Luckily for Anne Hathaway, the studio’s first choice for the role repeatedly said no. Director Frankel told Entertainment Weekly they offered the part to Rachel McAdams three times. At the time, McAdams was filming The Family Stone and, after starring in hits like Mean Girls and The Notebook, didn’t want to immediately take on another popular movie. According to Frankel, the studio really wanted McAdams, but she was set on turning it down.

Kate Hudson turned down a highly coveted role, something many actresses would have loved to play. She explained on Capital FM’s Capital Breakfast in February 2025 that it just wasn’t the right time, and she regretted not making it work. She admitted that when she first read the script, she had a negative reaction.

Meryl Streep, impressed by Anne Hathaway’s performance in the 2005 film Brokeback Mountain, played a key role in getting Hathaway cast in The Princess Diaries. Director Garry Marshall remembered Streep telling him about the scene and then contacting Fox executive Tom Rothman to say, “This girl is fantastic, and I think we’d work well together.”

Finding the right actress for Emily proved especially challenging. Frankel reviewed over 100 auditions for the role of Miranda’s tough assistant – including one from Tracie Thoms, who later auditioned for the part of Andy’s friend Lily – but it was Emily Blunt, dressed simply, who really stood out.

Emily Blunt was already at the Fox studio auditioning for the movie Eragon when a casting director asked her to read for The Devil Wears Prada. She recalled on The Late Late Show in May 2021 that she was in a hurry to catch her flight and felt flustered. She did the reading while wearing sweatpants and didn’t feel she looked the part.

A few days after missing out on the role in Eragon, Emily Blunt received a call from casting director David Frankel. She explained to Variety that she was at a club in London and had to take the call from the bathroom. Frankel told her that while he liked her audition, the studio wanted to see her again, this time dressed more like the character.

Emily was originally conceived as an American character, but after Kate Blunt performed the sharp dialogue with her British accent, the writers quickly changed the script. As screenwriter McKenna explained to Entertainment Weekly, they met for coffee and added British expressions throughout the script to match Blunt’s delivery.

Emily Blunt shared a story about how she draws inspiration from everyday life. On The Howard Stern Show, she explained that she often incorporates things she observes into her acting. For example, while filming, she noticed a stressed mother in a supermarket scolding her child. The mother used a specific gesture – opening and closing her hand – while saying, ‘Yeah, I’m hearing this, and I want to hear this.’ Blunt thought it was a powerful moment and ended up using the line in one of her films.

Stanley Tucci played a key role in creating some of the most memorable lines in the film. Producers searched for months to find the perfect actor to play Nigel, the art director, and Tucci accepted the role just in time, as he told Entertainment Weekly. He then perfectly captured Nigel’s witty and sarcastic personality, even coming up with some of the character’s most famous lines on the spot.

Stanley Tucci recalled fondly a scene where Miranda first arrives at the office, causing a bit of a panic among the staff. He explained to Buzzfeed that the cast kept bursting into laughter during filming, and director David Frankel would improvise lines for Tucci to deliver. Ultimately, ‘Gird your loins’ was the line that made the final cut. Tucci also shared with Entertainment Weekly that another line he came up with, ‘Tits in!’, was a recurring source of laughter but didn’t make it into the movie.

One of his most cherished memories from making the movie is the connection he formed with his costars. He became close enough with Emily Blunt to be invited to her wedding to John Krasinski in 2010. It was there he reconnected with Felicity Blunt, who is now his wife. They married in 2012 and have two children, Matteo and Emilia.

Joe Tucci shared with People magazine that he first met his current wife at the premiere of a film in 2006. He was still married to his late wife, Kate, who had just been diagnosed with breast cancer at the time. He explained that he made the movie, Kate began treatment, and then they attended the premiere. She lived for four more years after that. Interestingly, Felicity—Emily’s sister and now his wife—actually spoke with Kate at the premiere, and he has a photo of them together, which he finds quite strange.

Rosario Dawson, similar to Anne Hathaway, vividly recalls the moment she found out she’d been cast as Lily. It happened on her 30th birthday in August 2005. While she felt good about her audition – having often played supportive best friend roles at that point in her career and thinking Lily would be a natural fit – she was still overjoyed to get the news.

She remembered being at Dartmouth, workshopping a new play by Alan Ball. She found out she’d been cast in The Devil Wears Prada while having lunch in the cafeteria. “Someone just casually said, ‘Oh, by the way, you got The Devil Wears Prada. Happy birthday!'” she told TopMob News. “It was a really nice birthday memory.”

Thoms recalls seeing Adrian Grenier, who was very popular at the time due to his role in Entourage, surrounded by enthusiastic fans. Instead of signing autographs, Grenier cleverly gave each fan a CD by his band, The Honey Brothers.

Thoms observed that Josh Grenier, playing Andy’s boyfriend Nate, used the attention to highlight his bandmates, since he wasn’t the lead singer. Thoms admired how Grenier thoughtfully acknowledged everyone’s support and actively returned that appreciation to his fellow band members.

Honestly, my recent experience was incredible – it felt like stepping into an episode of Sex and the City! Okay, it wasn’t exactly that, but it had that same vibrant New York energy, that feeling of trying to navigate adulthood in the city. But if I’m being completely honest, there’s just one thing I wish I’d done differently.

She had a specific idea for how to react to the Marc Jacobs bag that both Lily and Thoms clearly wanted in a particular scene. She asked the prop department to keep the bag hidden until filming started so her reaction would be real. “The gasping, grabbing, and begging – that all happened because the bag was truly beautiful,” she explained.

She confessed to TopMob News that the purse was so beautiful she’d actually planned a way to keep it! She even imagined a scene where she’d ‘accidentally’ leave it in her trailer, but that part of the story never made it into the final cut. Sadly, that meant she never had a chance to take the purse with her when she left work.

Meryl Streep didn’t travel to Paris for the film. Originally, no one was scheduled to film in Paris for the scenes depicting Miranda and Andy’s trip to Paris Fashion Week. Producer Wendy Frankel was shocked by this, but she created a compelling preview that convinced the studio to move the film’s release to the summer and increase its budget.

Hathaway and Simon Baker (playing Christian, her other love interest) traveled to France to film scenes for two days. However, Meryl Streep filmed her parts in New York, as the studio said it would be too expensive to fly her to France.

Meryl Streep actually ended up missing out on a lot of the enjoyable moments on set. She later told Entertainment Weekly that fully committing to her stern Miranda character and distancing herself from the playful atmosphere was a difficult experience. She could hear everyone having fun and admitted to feeling depressed. She jokingly told herself it was the cost of playing the boss, and decided that it was the last time she’d ever try such an intense acting approach.

Before Meryl Streep playfully turned distant, she offered Anne Hathaway a quick word of encouragement, as Hathaway shared with People magazine. Streep told her, “I want you to know I think you’re going to be great, and I’m so happy to work with you…and that’s the last nice thing I’m going to say to you.”

That’s all. 

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2026-05-01 10:19