It began even while The Devil Wears Prada sequel was still filming, when leaked on-site set images of its costumes spread rapidly across social media.
Now, with its April 30 release imminent, the fashion frenzy has reached fever pitch.
The film’s two returning main stars, Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, have embarked on a worldwide promotional tour, where every red carpet appearance is meticulously catalogued, scrutinised and debated by fans.
It is as though the film has extended beyond the screen into a global runway of its own.
From Mexico City to Seoul and Tokyo, the duo has stepped out in a succession of lavish looks spanning Dolce & Gabbana, Schiaparelli, Chanel, Valentino, Prada, Balenciaga, Celine and Saint Laurent – a roll call of the industry’s most influential maisons.
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Even the April 20 premiere in New York City was live-streamed on Disney+ and Hulu – a level of spectacle typically reserved for significant fashion- adjacent events such as the Oscars.
The Devil Wears Prada debuted in 2006, charting the journey of Andrea Sachs (played by Hathaway), a young journalist who lands a job at a prestigious fashion magazine and is thrust into the cutthroat world of high fashion.
Streep stars as her notoriously exacting editor-in-chief, while other memorable characters include Emily Charlton (Emily Blunt) and Nigel Kipling (Stanley Tucci).
The first film became something of a modern fashion epoch, cementing its status as an industry touchpoint and shaping how the fashion scene is portrayed on screen.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Andrea. Everybody wants this. Everybody wants to be us,” Priestly famously said in one scene, underscoring the trope of fashion as an aspirational, gatekept world defined by power, polish and exclusivity.
Then there was her famous speech about cerulean. In it, she dissects how a seemingly ordinary shade of blue is filtered down from high-fashion runways into mass-market clothing.
“It’s not just blue, it’s not turquoise, it’s not lapis, it’s actually cerulean,” Priestly admonishes.
That monologue illustrates the trickle-down influence of the industry and the unseen machinery behind everyday style choices.
As it stands, the sequel will explore how the fashion industry has evolved. Audiences are also eager to see how the wardrobes have changed as trends shift.
Collaborative fashion collections are being launched rapidly to coincide with the second film’s release.
Each design draws on moments from the 2006 film, using subtle nods and references that reward fans of the original while reworking them for a contemporary audience.
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Old Navy’s line of T-shirts, for example, carries Priestly’s iconic scathing rebukes like, “By all means, move at a glacial pace.”
Hathaway’s production company, Somewhere Pictures, has released a collection of cerulean-themed clothing.
The colour was even given its own fictional code, DWP2-010526, which stands for Devil Wears Prada 2, followed by the film’s US release date.
Walmart’s designs are more than novelty pieces, with elevated, polished offerings comprising statement skirts and sharp dresses.
Other collections include those from Target and Kohl’s. However, all of these fall within a more affordable range – a strange contrast to the film’s narrative of high fashion.
Film merchandise items, particularly fashion-led ones, have become something of a staple in showbiz.
Warner Bros, for instance, collaborated with 35 partners on Wuthering Heights-branded products, while Marty Supreme capitalised on fashion hype by releasing limited-edition jackets.
As for The Devil Wears Prada, it seems to no longer be just a film about fashion. The sequel has turned into fashion itself ....
