Streep, Hathaway dazzle at 'Devil Wears Prada 2' movie gala in Shanghai

Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway reunited in Shanghai on Friday for a gala night promoting "The Devil Wears Prada 2," the much-anticipated sequel to the 2006 hit.

Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway pose for a photo at a gala night event in Shanghai to promote "The Devil Wears Prada 2," April 10, 2026. [Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios]

At the star-studded gala, Oscar-winning actors Streep and Hathaway turned heads on the red carpet, their reunion drawing excited screams from packed crowds.

David Frankel returned to helm the sequel, which reunites Streep, Hathaway, Stanley Tucci and Emily Blunt. Many of the original cast reprise their iconic roles in a story set two decades later as the fashion magazine world grapples with the digital age.

A 20-minute clip from the film was screened for media, influencers and guests in Shanghai. The footage showed both Miranda Priestly (Streep) and Andy Sachs (Hathaway) facing career crises as traditional media declines.

Andy, now a freshly laid-off veteran journalist, returns to "Runway" magazine and teams up again with Miranda to face off against Emily Charlton (Blunt), Miranda's former assistant turned luxury-group executive who controls funding that could ensure the magazine's survival.

"I think that I was such a kid when I made the first one and I had so many questions about how my life was going to unfold, who I was going to be and what type of actress I was going to be," Hathaway said. "I certainly haven't answered all of the questions, but a few things I've kind of committed to. Like my character Andy, I'm really happy with the choices that I've made and I feel really lucky, incredibly fortunate."

Hathaway said the characters in the film haven't changed but have deepened. "I hope that audiences know that everything they've been up to — 20 years of things that they've been struggling with, dealing with, trying to make sense of — these characters have been going through the same thing," she said.

Streep reflected that the original film spoke to people navigating uncertainty. "This film gave so much hope to young women and young men, maybe even those starting out their careers," she said. "It shored up certain people. This is the first movie that I've ever made that men came up to me and said that I know how your character felt."

Streep said the new film "logs into the joy of human creation" and demonstrates "how beautiful it is to dress up, and look ridiculous a little bit, to stand out and stand up, and be human, embrace color and life and design and everything that's rich in being a human being. So I love that it celebrates that."

Hathaway also spoke about why the story remains relevant today.

"For me, I just like to be reminded that you can be really smart and really hard working and really educated and have a lot of things going for you and you could still mess up, and you still have a lot to learn," she said. "You can get better and you can learn to shift your weight and you can improve and then you can also decide for yourself who you want to be."

"I think it's a kind of a propulsive story. It's just really fun to watch. And it has the emotion of seeing these people that we saw 20 years ago," Streep added. "It was a unique opportunity in my life. I've stayed friends with people from movies I've made 20, 30, 40 years ago. But I've never gotten the chance to get together with them and do it again. I just love it."

Eileen Gu, Zhou Ye, Ju Xiaowen and He Cong pose for photos as they walk the red carpet for a gala night promoting "The Devil Wears Prada 2," April 10, 2026. [Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios]

The event was designed around the film's fashion aesthetic, with organizers creating an immersive "front row at the fashion show" experience fitting for Shanghai's status as a style capital. A giant red high-heel shoe installation towered over the red carpet, bringing the film's iconic look from screen to reality.

Notable names from China's fashion scene — freestyle skiing champion Eileen Gu, actor Zhou Ye and supermodels Ju Xiaowen and He Cong — also graced the red carpet, each in their own distinct style.

"The Devil Wears Prada 2" will open in China on April 30 with an IMAX version exclusive to the Chinese market.