Mumbai (Maharashtra)

In a rare cross-continental moment blending Hollywood legacy with Bollywood flair, Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway sat down with filmmaker Karan Johar for an intimate conversation ahead of the India release of 'The Devil Wears Prada 2' on May 1, 2026.

Filmed during the Tokyo press junket, the much-anticipated full interaction, following viral teaser clips, has now been unveiled.

In the conversation the trio they reflect on the film's legacy, fashion, and storytelling.

Karan Johar, known for his candid personality, set the tone early with humor and self-awareness. "Should I be worried about myself? Or should you be flattered? One of the two. I just want to start with that," he said, before admitting, " I have been channeling Miranda Priestly in many of my boardrooms."

Streep responded reassuringly, "No. No, you shouldn't be worried," while offering her interpretation of the character: "I think that Miranda is not everybody's idea of a role model for a good boss. But I think that she is someone who is credibly and reliably and respectfully in charge of the people. And she takes her job seriously. And she loves working."

A key highlight of the discussion was revisiting the story nearly two decades after the original 2006 film.

Streep reflected on the passage of time, saying, "But the film that you loved appeared before we had iPhones. The world has changed so profoundly in 20 years. I've changed in 20 years and you have changed in 20 years." She added, "And so we bring all of that into this new incarnation of Runway. And it deals with the digital revolution in journalism and in publishing."

Karan, visibly impressed by the actors, quipped, "When I saw the trailer, I was like, what has happened? Why is this Benjamin Button phenomenon ruling these two wonderful ladies?" Streep replied with characteristic wit, "You need a new prescription," adding to which Anne said, "The worse your vision, the more we look the same."

For Hathaway, returning to the sequel was both nostalgic and affirming. She said, elaborating, "I got to go back and work with all the people that protected me when I was a 22 year old actress who showed up on set, trembling like a leaf... And I've built up my craft and I've built up my confidence over 20 years."

Streep described her own return as instinctive, "It felt sort of right, you know, I felt, look, the script is so good." She also noted the long development process, saying, "It took that long for her to find a concept... to place these characters in jeopardy, in the shifting sands of the moment."

Fashion, central to the franchise, formed a significant part of the conversation. Streep admitted, "I was never interested in it, honestly. I was interested in costume and I took my degree in college in costume design.," adding, "And so I looked at how we dress as a manifestation of character and telling you where you are, what your station in life is, not only what your mood is that morning, where you, who you aspire to be."

She said, "So many things are eloquent about what we put on in the morning. And fashion itself as you know what the trend is, I just wasn't as interested in it as I was in how it filtered into a person's life and made characters more vivid and told us more about them."

Hathaway credited the film for reshaping her perspective, "This movie transformed that," she said, acknowledging costume designer Patricia Field. "I really learned just kind of the art form of fashion and style from her," she added.

The discussion also explored their acting philosophies. Karan observed to Streep, "You bring in the most unpredictable pauses in the way you construct a sentence," to which she responded, "I probably am not aware of that... For me, it's about listening more than how I'm talking."

Turning to Hathaway, Karan Johar noted, "You emanate a certain kind of goodness," and she replied, "I think that so much of acting is about empathy."

The conversation concluded on a note of mutual admiration. Streep praised Hathaway, saying, "I think you're an amazing, amazing artist... it was such a pleasure to re-encounter you as a grown-up," recalling, "You were this little tremulous thing."

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Directed by David Frankel and written by Aline Brosh McKenna, 'The Devil Wears Prada 2' reunites the original creative team while introducing new cast members including Kenneth Branagh, Simone Ashley, Justin Theroux, Lucy Liu, and B. J. Novak, among others.

Tracie Thoms and Tibor Feldman also reprise their roles.

Backed by 20th Century Studios, the film is set for a theatrical release across India on May 1, 2026.