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Aline Brosh McKenna Talks Fan Service and Fashion in Devil Wears Prada 2
Screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna has always seemed aware that writing a sequel to The Devil Wears Prada would be a risky endeavor. For that reason, she wasn't very enthusiastic about the idea until just three years ago. However, when Meryl Streep mentioned she was considering revisiting one of her most famous roles, what could a screenwriter do?
Twenty years after her original work, all the producers of one of the most influential comedies of the 21st century came together. According to McKenna, things moved quickly after meeting with Streep. "Meryl's opinion is incredibly important," said McKenna, who has also worked on projects like 27 Dresses, Morning Glory, We Bought a Zoo, and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. "When she said she would be open to hearing ideas, we had many ideas piled up at that point."
In The Hollywood Reporter's I'm Having an Episode podcast, McKenna discussed building the dazzling yet similarly luxurious world of The Devil Wears Prada, how the original has aged over time, and why a "That's all" is sufficient. McKenna explained that she has been following the journalism, fashion, and publishing industries and has started to think about how much the world has changed in 20 years. Ways of making money have changed, workplace social values have shifted. She had begun to wonder what these four characters would do in a changing world.
McKenna noted that she has thought about Miranda Priestly many times over the past 20 years. It's still fun to imagine what Miranda would say when experiencing slightly annoying situations, like getting the wrong coffee order or having issues with seat assignments on a plane. The key to exciting Streep was wanting to get her thoughts early on. She went to see her at a reading Lin-Manuel Miranda was doing at a theater in Washington Heights and talked about where these characters would be throughout the day.
McKenna emphasized that she wasn't bothered by taking existing materials and reassembling and updating them, especially since there was no request from Disney. The impetus came from the original producer, Wendy Finerman. She brought to their attention that Meryl wanted to talk about it. Like every film, it came from a story she was excited about. There was no cynicism or calculation in this; just a personal desire to return as a fan.
Twenty years after her original work, all the producers of one of the most influential comedies of the 21st century came together. According to McKenna, things moved quickly after meeting with Streep. "Meryl's opinion is incredibly important," said McKenna, who has also worked on projects like 27 Dresses, Morning Glory, We Bought a Zoo, and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. "When she said she would be open to hearing ideas, we had many ideas piled up at that point."
In The Hollywood Reporter's I'm Having an Episode podcast, McKenna discussed building the dazzling yet similarly luxurious world of The Devil Wears Prada, how the original has aged over time, and why a "That's all" is sufficient. McKenna explained that she has been following the journalism, fashion, and publishing industries and has started to think about how much the world has changed in 20 years. Ways of making money have changed, workplace social values have shifted. She had begun to wonder what these four characters would do in a changing world.
McKenna noted that she has thought about Miranda Priestly many times over the past 20 years. It's still fun to imagine what Miranda would say when experiencing slightly annoying situations, like getting the wrong coffee order or having issues with seat assignments on a plane. The key to exciting Streep was wanting to get her thoughts early on. She went to see her at a reading Lin-Manuel Miranda was doing at a theater in Washington Heights and talked about where these characters would be throughout the day.
McKenna emphasized that she wasn't bothered by taking existing materials and reassembling and updating them, especially since there was no request from Disney. The impetus came from the original producer, Wendy Finerman. She brought to their attention that Meryl wanted to talk about it. Like every film, it came from a story she was excited about. There was no cynicism or calculation in this; just a personal desire to return as a fan.
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