For nearly two decades, The Devil Wears Prada has lived far beyond the Runway.
What started as a sharp comedy about fashion, ambition, and impossible bosses became something much bigger for queer audiences. The 2006 film became a cult favorite, packed with endlessly quotable lines, iconic fashion moments, and beloved characters like Nigel, the razor-sharp fashion editor played by Stanley Tucci.
Now, director David Frankel and writer-producer Aline Brosh McKenna are returning for The Devil Wears Prada 2, and according to McKenna, queer audiences were never far from their minds while making the sequel.
“I’m so excited to see someone from the queer press,” McKenna told Gayety during our interview. “These are my people.”
She continued:
“This is who I personally think about a ton when I’m making the movie — women and queer folks.”
How queer audiences shaped ‘The Devil Wears Prada’
McKenna said she first realized the original film had become a phenomenon within queer culture after spotting its popularity at a video store in New York City.
“A couple years after the movie came out, I was in the video store on Christopher Street,” she recalled. “Somebody came in and said, ‘I want to rent The Devil Wears Prada.’ And the guy goes, ‘Oh, that’s never in stock. It comes in and it goes out 10 minutes later.’”
That moment stayed with her.
“If the queer community understands and embraces the story and these characters, that’s everything for me.”
The sequel reunites Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, and Tucci as the fashion world continues evolving in the digital era. The film also introduces new cast members, including Caleb Hearon, Simone Ashley, and Helen J Shen.
Nigel’s Impact Still Resonates
One of the most emotional parts of the conversation centered on Nigel and why queer audiences connected so deeply with him in the first film. Of the main 4 characters in the franchise, he is the only notable out character.
McKenna even dived into a memorable moment from Nigel in the original film, where he opens up to Andy about his childhood and love for fashion.
“Nigel’s speech in the first movie about reading the magazine under the covers in bed at night was very much inspired by a friend of mine growing up, but also me,” she said.
As a refresher, here is the dialogue from that scene: “Let’s say a young boy growing up in Rhode Island with 10 brothers pretending to go to soccer practice when he was really going to sewing class and reading Runway under the covers at night with a flashlight.”
Mckenna added that although the films rarely spell out the characters’ private lives, audiences still found themselves reflected in Nigel’s experience.
“We don’t really know anything about what happens when Nigel goes home,” McKenna said. “But I think that his experience has become so palpable for a gay audience, and it just makes me really happy.”
She also pointed to fashion itself as an inherently queer-influenced space.
“So many of the designers that I revered growing up and still revere are queer,” she said.
The Lady Gaga Moment That Has Us All “Gagged”
The creators also opened up about one of the sequel’s buzziest additions: a cameo from Lady Gaga.
“One of the gay men on set came over to me and was like, ‘You have no idea what you’ve done with this,’” she said.
Frankel added that Gaga was “such a wonderful person” to work with and revealed that her involvement came together after she connected with Streep during the SNL 50 celebration.
“And then we were talking about who’s our pop star,” Frankel said. “And I realized, wait a minute, Meryl, hey, you want to give a call to your friend?”
We can’t believe this cameo really came from a simple “what if we just called her up?” moment. Honestly, it does not get more legendary than that.
Lady Gaga also contributed three songs to the soundtrack of The Devil Wears Prada 2, including “RUNWAY,” which received a music video featuring Doechii.
The Cast Helped Shape the Sequel
According to Frankel and McKenna, the returning cast also played a major role in shaping the sequel after they read the first draft.
“They know these characters as well, if not better than we do,” Frankel said.
One especially important note came from Blunt, who realized the script originally did not include a scene featuring all four main characters together.
“There’s not a scene with all four of us,” Frankel recalled her saying.
That feedback ultimately inspired a key scene in the finished film, with the entire OG cast together. For McKenna, that kind of collaboration helped make returning to this world feel meaningful instead of purely nostalgic.
And with queer audiences once again preparing to return to Runway, the creators seem fully aware of just how personal this franchise has become for so many people.
