Meryl Streep reveals she initially rejected playing Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada so she could double her money

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Oh my god, can you BELIEVE it? Meryl Streep almost didn’t play Miranda Priestly! I mean, Miranda! Apparently, she actually turned down the role at first, but not because she didn’t want it! She wanted to make sure she got double her usual fee – can you imagine?! It’s just…so Meryl! She knows her worth, and honestly, good for her! It’s amazing to think we almost didn’t get that performance. I’m obsessed!

The Academy Award-winning actress received critical praise for her performance as the demanding editor of Runway magazine in David Frankel’s 2006 satirical film about the world of fashion.

Meryl Streep, reprising her role as Miranda Priestley in The Devil Wears Prada 2, revealed she leveraged her fame to negotiate a higher salary when she accepted the part.

Meryl Streep, 76, recently shared with Today that she immediately recognized the potential of the project. ‘The script was fantastic,’ she said, ‘and when they offered me the role, I actually turned it down at first.’

She added: ‘I wanted to see if I doubled my ask, and they went right away and said “Sure.”‘ 

Meryl Streep explained to Jenna Bush Hager, who appears in the new movie, that she’d been considering retiring from acting, which led her to negotiate with the filmmakers about her role in the sequel.

She explained, ‘It took me until age 56 to realize I was capable of that!’ She was confident it would be successful and felt she was needed.

I was hoping for it, but I was prepared to accept their decision. At 56, I was already considering retirement, so it wasn’t a dealbreaker.

The gamble proved successful: the movie earned an incredible $326 million worldwide, despite only costing between $35 and $41 million to make.

The sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, released on May 1st, hasn’t been well-received by critics. Many feel it doesn’t have the same style and energy that made the first movie a hit.

The film has faced criticism for a few reasons, including a poorly developed Asian character and reports that background actors were let go after Anne Hathaway raised concerns with producers about the use of very thin models.

Anne Hathaway, 43, addressed the recent controversy on Tuesday, stating it was an overreaction. She clarified that reports circulating on social media claiming her comments led to cast members being fired are inaccurate.

She explained to Good Morning America that a small, spontaneous moment on set has been blown out of proportion and turned into a much larger news story.

I want to clarify that reports circulating about people being fired due to our size inclusivity efforts are untrue. That simply wasn’t the reason for any dismissals.

Hathaway revealed the incident related to a specific scene that she’s forbidden from discussing. 

She explained that no one lost their job, and the project actually led to new employment opportunities. She couldn’t reveal details about the scene, but highlighted a beautiful and incredible song written by Lady Gaga.

‘Isn’t it better when you see so many different types of bodies up there with that?’

Meryl Streep once mentioned being surprised by how thin the models on set appeared, describing them as beautiful and young, but also worryingly underweight, in an interview related to Anne Hathaway’s Harper’s Bazaar cover story.

‘Annie clocked it too,’ she added, revealing that Hathaway quickly stepped in behind the scenes.

Streep explained that she immediately spoke with the film’s producers and convinced them to ensure the models in the fashion show wouldn’t be excessively thin.

‘She’s a stand-up girl,’ Streep said, praising her co-star’s intervention.

Streep shared that making the sequel wasn’t easy, as filming was often interrupted by large crowds of enthusiastic fans and photographers.

You know, even though I was familiar with the original movie and its impact, I was still genuinely surprised by how people reacted to it twenty years later. It’s one thing to know something has a legacy, and another to witness the continued passion firsthand – it really took me aback!

Oh my gosh, it was insane! They actually had to bring in police barricades and everything just to manage us fans! Buses and buses of us just showed up at the set, desperate to catch a glimpse. It was total chaos, but the best kind of chaos, honestly!

The disruption even affected filming, as Streep remembered paparazzi repeatedly running in front of the camera and causing a commotion with the crew.

‘Annie kept her cool, but I was unnerved,’ Streep added.

The studio making the next Devil Wears Prada movie is getting a lot of criticism in Asia. People are upset with how they’ve shown an Asian character, feeling it relies too much on tired and inaccurate stereotypes.

Movie fans are disappointed with 20th Century Studios’ introduction of Jin Chao, a new character played by Helen J. Shen. Many feel the studio hasn’t handled the enthusiastic Asian intern well.

The first trailer introducing the character Chao quickly raised concerns among viewers in East Asia. This was mainly due to the implications of her name and how she was depicted – as a very intelligent and mathematically skilled character who fits the ‘nerd’ stereotype.

Some social media users have pointed out that the name sounds similar to “Ching Chong,” a historically racist slur used against Chinese immigrants in Western countries during the 1800s.

Hong Kong’s Oriental Daily News reports that her name is a racially offensive term, implying disrespect and annoyance towards the way Chinese people speak.

Some people believe the way a character is dressed, acts, works, and their education level reinforce harmful and obvious racist stereotypes about East Asians.

As a huge fan, I’m so excited! The sequel to The Devil Wears Prada is finally coming out – April 30th in China, and then May 1st here in the US and the UK. I’ve already marked my calendar!

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2026-04-30 11:14