THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2 Review

Andy (Anne Hathaway) is back at Runway. After 20 years as an award winning journalist elsewhere, she's laid off when her company cuts its journalism budget. Miranda (Meryl Streep) is still running the show, but a lot has changed. The Devil Wears Prada 2 addresses traditional news media, how it's been affected over time, and the trajectory they are anticipating. The passion exists but the resources are limited.

If you liked the humor in the first movie, you will most likely continue to like it here. However it is worth noting this film is definitely on its tippy-toes, especially compared to the last film. They are very conscious in the differences in societal norms, and take that into account with the comedic bits in the film. Occasionally it is a drawback because of how crucial a part of the original film these bits are, but they do still have a lot of fun here.

The HR friendly comedic structure does have the biggest effect on Streep, who's whole shtick in the first movie is how mean she is allowed to be. She is definitely toning it back a bit here, and it is something this film is missing that the first one had. Streep still absolutely crushes it here, and she gets to have some more emotional moments than she did previously. Anne Hathaway is terrific, this film is really riding on her performance and she delivers. Great comedic timing, and well executed dramatic beats come periodically. I thought Stanley Tucci was great, he grounds the film in a similar way to the first movie, but this time his character is allowed to be much more tender and heartfelt.

The iconic stature of the original film attracted some big names to make cameos in this one. The highlights of this batch were Lucy Liu and Caleb Hearon for me. There is also an original song in this film by Lady Gaga that is really good, and definitely a contender for Best Original Song at next years Academy Awards.

This film is making a pretty loud statement about the constant threat of AI and the death of journalism. It's not particularly groundbreaking in its theme of these issues but it is certainly warranted. I think there's a narrative of accepting that your expectations will not be met the same way in 2026 that I genuinely appreciate. There is also this

message that it doesn't matter how good you are at your job, there is an unavoidable feeling that life as we know it is ending. It does create a legitimately sad tone that resonated with me more than I was anticipating. If you participate in and care about media, you will most likely walk out of this movie feeling more affected by it than you anticipated.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 is inherently going to be more some peoples thing than others, as is the first one. Although the first one is definitely funnier, I do think this one feels a little bit more universal in its themes. I went in with trepidation, as many sequels to come out this long after the first one don't live up to expectations. I was met with an endearing and entertaining sequel that does right by the original.

This is an example of a popcorn sequel that is inevitably going to make money, but was also made with heart, all while being a legitimately good time at the movies.

🍿 SCORE = 68 / 100