Meryl Streep opines on the current state of modern filmmaking, arguing that the dominance of superhero storytelling has led to less nuanced representation of characters across the industry. As Miranda Priestly puts it in the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, there is a shortage of “visionaries” to replace “benders.”
In a recent interview on the Hits Radio Breakfast Show with Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt during the The Devil Wears Prada 2 press tour, Streep criticized the growing reliance on clear heroes and villains in modern films. “I think we’re trending towards the Marvel version of movies now, where there’s a villain and there’s a good guy, and it’s very boring,” she said, adding that the most compelling storytelling comes from characters who resist easy categorization.
“What’s really interesting in life is that some heroes are flawed, while some villains are human and interesting and have their own strengths,” she continued. “So that’s what I like about this (movie). It’s dirtier.”
Streep will reprise her role as Miranda Priestly in the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, returning to the world of high fashion 20 years after her previous film. The actor also recently talked about renegotiating his pay for the original 2006 film, revealing that after initially turning down the offer, he returned on revised terms.
“I said, ‘No, I’m not going to do it,'” she told Today in a separate interview, noting that she ultimately returned after the studio agreed to an offer that doubled her original salary. “They immediately went and said, ‘Sure.’ It took me this long to understand that I could do it. I felt like they needed me. I was ready to retire. It was a lesson learned.”
The discussion also touched on AI and whether Miranda Priestly would use it, which is another theme the sequel will tackle. Streep suggested that her role didn’t require such a thing, given that she already has an assistant to handle that kind of work. That prompted Hathaway to share her recent hiring experience. While interviewing candidates for unspecified roles, the company received nearly identical thank-you notes from each candidate. She suspects that all of the thank you notes were written using ChatGPT.
“The Devil Wears Prada 2” is currently in theaters.
