Miranda Priestley is back, and the first wave of audience reactions suggests the wait was worth it.
"The Devil Wears Prada 2" opened in theaters Friday, and fans who caught early screenings took to social media almost immediately. "Just finished The Devil Wears Prada 2 and CINEMA IS ALIVE AND WELL," one viewer wrote on X. Another called it "the perfect summer movie," praising Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Emily Blunt as "a phenomenal, unmatched trio" and declaring Stanley Tucci "a masterclass in scene-stealing grace."
Not every reaction was unconditional. One fan who admitted to dreading the film wrote that it "did the unthinkable — it proved me wrong. This is no soulless cash-in. It actually justifies its existence and surpassed my expectations." Another offered measured praise: "Not a classic like the first, but the cast is so good that it's still fun."
Several early viewers singled out the film's engagement with the media industry. One called it "a more poignant piece on modern journalism and the folks doing their best to uphold the ethical values of the industry." Another praised its "themes of a dying media landscape."
The sequel reunites the core cast from David Frankel's 2006 original. Streep returns as Runway editor Miranda Priestley, Hathaway as journalist Andi Sachs, Blunt as Emily Charlton, and Tucci as Nigel Kipling. Tracie Thoms and Tibor Feldman also reprise their original roles.
The new additions are substantial. Kenneth Branagh, Simone Ashley, Lucy Liu, Justin Theroux, B.J. Novak, Pauline Chalamet, Rachel Bloom, Patrick Brammall, Conrad Ricamora, and Lady Gaga all join the cast. The film arrives 20 years after the original, which became a cultural touchstone and launched Hathaway toward A-list status.
Whether the critical reception will match the fan enthusiasm remains to be seen, but the early social media response is notably warmer than many legacy sequels receive at launch.
