Meryl Streep made headlines last month when she revealed that her co-star Anne Hathaway consulted producers on the set of “The Devil Wears Prada 2” to avoid using models who were too “skeletal.”
“Not only are they beautiful and young, and everyone looks young to me, but I was struck by how incredibly thin the models were,” Streep told Harper’s Bazaar in March. “I thought everything had been resolved years ago. Annie figured it out, too, and she communicated that straight to the producers and got a promise that the model for the show that we assembled for the movie wasn’t so skeletal. She’s a stand-up girl.”
In a conversation with Variety at the film’s world premiere in New York, Hathaway explained what inspired her to speak up and start the conversation.
“I was aware that there were beautiful models on set, many of them in traditional model sizes,” she said on Monday night’s red carpet. “I knew what the background of the scene was, and I thought it would be more fun for the audience to have a wider variety of bodies on display, because all the different shapes are beautiful.”
The sequel was backed by better studio resources than the original, with sequences actually filmed during live runway shows at Milan Fashion Week. Hathaway, who leverages the star power she has amassed over the past 20 years, praised the film’s producers for being quick to accommodate her requests.
“I went to the producers and asked them this question: ‘Don’t you think the scene would be even stronger if we took a more comprehensive approach to sizing?'” she said. “They looked up and were so sad that they didn’t think about it. I think they were so locked in and just going with the flow. But as soon as they saw it, they were the ones who made it happen in an hour or so.”
Hathaway concluded, “It all starts with a question, right?”
The Devil Wears Prada 2, like most modern sequels, features a more diverse cast than its predecessor. New additions include Lucy Liu and Bridgerton star Simone Ashley, who says she is “honored” to be part of a work that “represents women in a real way.” Helen J. Shen, a 26-year-old Chinese-American actor who plays the new assistant to Streep’s Miranda Priestly, praised Hathaway for “leading by osmosis” and helping create a more inclusive set.
“I was very happy to hear that she said that,” Shen said of Hathaway’s conversations with film producers. “When I remembered this movie 20 years ago, I never thought I would have been cast in it. Knowing that there are people out there who think runway, office, and fashion are not for me, I definitely disagree.”
The Devil Wears Prada 2 will be released in theaters on May 1st.
