So Good to See You Again! Review of the Unveiled Footage for “The Devil Wears Prada 2”

What will “The Runway” be like 20 years from now? Time has passed, but the characters are still the same. Is there any moment as moving as this? Since the main cast members are all still active and working hard, it’s a reality that comes together so perfectly—it’s basically special fan service.

〈The Devil Wears Prada 2__ opens in South Korea on April 29, marking the franchise’s first-ever worldwide release in the country. This time around, stars from the first film—Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci, and more—return, drawing massive attention. Just as importantly, the production team from the original film is back in full, raising expectations to the highest level. After the first installment, director David Frankel returns to the director’s chair once again, with Ellen Brosh McKenna writing the screenplay and Karen Rosenfelt producing.

〈The Devil Wears Prada 2__ brings together Miranda (Meryl Streep), the editor-in-chief of the legendary fashion magazine “The Runway,” and Andy (Anne Hathaway), who returns 20 years later as a newly appointed planning editor—meeting Emily (Emily Blunt), who has since become an executive at a luxury brand. With the media landscape entirely reshaped, the story follows how they stake their entire careers on reclaiming leadership in the fashion world once again.

So, will this new “Runway” truly be able to summon the glory of 20 years ago again? On the morning of the 7th, at CGV Yongsan iPark Mall, a footage preview session featuring about 20 minutes of scenes from 〈The Devil Wears Prada 2〉 was held. The footage explains why Andy ended up returning to the Runway. Here’s what it shows.

Twenty years ago, Andy worked as Miranda’s assistant at the fashion magazine “The Runway,” all while dreaming of becoming a journalist. Fast-forward 20 years—she’s now a well-established professional reporter. At the “Gold Keyboard” awards ceremony, an event honoring outstanding journalists, she suddenly receives a text message dismissal notice. The reason? Financial trouble at the publication “New York Vanguard,” where she works. After being fired, Andy takes the “Gold Keyboard” award—and at the moment she’s supposed to deliver her acceptance speech, she erupts in fury about the “importance of journalism,” basically venting her frustration straight into the microphone. Then, just like that, her speech video goes viral through the algorithm.

Meanwhile, at the fashion magazine “The Runway,” Miranda is still serving as editor-in-chief, radiating an overwhelming presence. Nigel (Stanley Tucci) is still right by Miranda’s side as well. However, due to some kind of misstep, “The Runway” finds itself on the brink of losing all its advertisers. In response, at headquarters they watch Andy’s acceptance speech video about the “importance of journalism,” then scout her to become the planning editor for “The Runway.”

When Andy reunites with Miranda, she’s genuinely thrilled to see her. But the real punchline is that Miranda doesn’t remember Andy at all. Even though Nigel tells Andy she was “one of Emily’s people,” to Miranda, Andy must have just been one of many ordinary assistants. In any case, as the planning editor of the “Runway,” Andy teams up with editor-in-chief Miranda to visit Dior to persuade the advertisers—only for the Dior executive who shows up to the meeting to be Emily.

You can’t find a trace of the Emily from back then—flustered and rattled around Miranda. Everything has flipped completely. Emily is now the “advertising boss,” even nobler than the “boss,” meeting Miranda in a real face-off of job versus job. Watching Miranda take Emily’s unreasonable demands without any questions also leaves you with a bitter emptiness: even at the “Runway,” there’s “no business like business,” and money always comes first. Still, what never changes is Emily’s personality. Seeing Andy back on the Runway again, Emily delivers her usual cold, sharp, blunt barbs in her trademark style—giving fans of the first film that warm sense of familiarity and delight.

Easter eggs for fans of the first film are scattered throughout as well. If you remember the line “Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking,” you’ll feel a special kind of welcome from the brief phrase “Spring Florals.” And if you also remember the “Cerulean Blue” moment that Miranda emphasized in the first film, then in the second film, you’ll be moved beyond words seeing Andy dressed in Cerulean Blue.

〈The Devil Wears Prada 2__ appears set to show the present-day lives these characters—living and breathing alongside the audience over the years—have reached through countless choices and decisions. In addition, the film is expected to both highlight the harsh realities of today’s changing media environment and the decline of journalism, while also showcasing the characters’ struggles to hold onto their place and status—“even so.” 〈The Devil Wears Prada 2〉 opens on April 29.