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It has been 20 years since “The Devil Wears Prada” and so much in the fashion industry and more specifically fashion publishing has changed. In many ways fashion publishing is in decline. So many wonderful aspects of the fashion industry and fashion publishing are gone, never to return. And that lack of glamour, pizazz, sparkle and sass that made the fashion industry and its counterpart, fashion publishing, so rarefied and unique is a distant memory.
And “The Devil Wears Prada 2” demonstrates the changes that permeate throughout the fashion publishing in the 20 years since the original “The Devil Wears Prada.” Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep) has been stripped of most of her influence and is more subservient to the fashion publishing higher executives. Runway magazine is operating on a show string budget with more attention being paid to Runway magazine’s online presence with less attention on fashion editorials, something that Miranda Priestly prided herself on in the past.
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Runway magazine, no longer a beacon of the now and next in fashion, has pivoted setting a standard for its journalistic integrity. And thus, we have the deus ex machina of the plot of “The Devil Wears Prada 2.” Andie Sachs, who has recently been laid off from her investigative journalistic job, returns to Runway magazine to salvage Runway magazine’s reputation after a critical mistake has been made in one of its feature articles.
When Sachs returns to helm the magazine’s feature departure, she observes that the environment at the publication has changed dramatically. Staffers wear jeans; the staff is more size-inclusive; editorial budgets and advertising dollars have been reduced, and private car services and first-class airline tickets have been eliminated. Still, the most noticeable development is the reduction of Miranda Priestly power and largesse. Though Priestly influence is still important to Runway magazine, Priestly is struggling and trying to survive the changing tide in fashion publishing.
Andie immediately goes to work revitalizing Runway, at first to no avail. Though her feature articles are well written and expansive, we are in a different time. Readers skim through the journalistic content, not sharing and not clicking. Additionally, the owner of Elias Clarke—Elias Clarke is the holding company for Runway—dies and leaves the company to his techie son who has no loyalty to Priestly or fashion publishing.
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“The Devil Wears Prada 2” examines the changing tide in the fashion industry and how fashion industry professionals are adapting. This second iteration of the well-loved fashion film plays down fashion glamour and takes an inside look at the corporate side of fashion publishing. And though there is less exposure to great fashion and spectacular runway presentation, there is a closer examination at the emotions and the private lives of the main characters and the motivations behind their behavior.
While this approach makes the story evolve at a slower pace, it shines more light on the characters’ inner turmoil. And “Devil Wears Prada 2” aptly reflects so many of the challenges that fashion publishing and media is confronting.
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Meryl Streep as Miranda Priestly brings the icy, regimented demeanor that is still necessary for the character. However, in this incarnation there are more cracks in the veneer. With Priestly’s tenure at Runway in danger, audiences witness a sublimated vulnerability that did not show up in the original movie. Priestly is on the verge of being eliminated at Runway, forcing her to go along to get along. This strategic positioning kind of works, but she is running out of steam.
Anne Hathaway’s (Andie Sachs) is bolder, self-assured, and a better problem solver than the Andie of “The Devil Wears Prada.” The 20 years away from Runway has made her a force to reckon with and given her a stronger backbone. Andie Sachs now undoubtedly knows what is important and how to get it done.
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The most interesting character in this second iteration is Emily Blunt (Emily). Emily is now a creative director at Dior and controls most of the advertising dollars of the European luxury house. Emily has grown more calculating and self-absorbed, if that is possible. In the past 20 years Emily is divorced with two children and is engaged to a tech billionaire. She wields power with crafty, incisive narcissism.
“The Devil Wears Prada 2” is about a new work world taken over by social media and AI technology. And where in the not distant past creativity, artistry, and masterful craftsmanship set the standard, we are all now being diminished, manipulated, and controlled by the very thing that has made our world lives easier. Still, there could be a redemptive outcome. Well, maybe!!
William S. Gooch
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