‘Devil Wears Prada 2’ Hits $676 Million Globally, Propels Franchise Past $1 Billion Mark

A billion dollars? During summer movie season? Groundbreaking.

“The Devil Wears Prada 2” has grossed $676 million at the global box office, propelling the franchise past the $1 billion mark. That’s combined with the haul from the original 2004 film, which ended its run with $326 million, not adjusted for inflation.

It’s a notable milestone to cross with just two films, especially in post-COVID times. Disney, which spent roughly $100 million to make and $80 million to market the second “Prada,” will turn a tidy profit.

“The Devil Wears Prada 2” opened in early May to $77 million in North America and $233 million globally over the weekend — nearly three times above the start of the original. The comedy sequel remained a big-screen draw with $217 million in North America and $458 million overseas to stand as the fourth biggest domestic, third largest international and fourth-highest grossing worldwide release to date.

“The Devil Wears Prada” was based on Lauren Weisberg’s 2003 novel, a roman à clef about working as an assistant to Vogue boss Anna Wintour. The second movie, which brought back the original director David Frankel and screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna, picks up 20 years later as Anne Hathaway’s Andy Sachs returns to Runway magazine as a features editor under Meryl Streep’s all-powerful editor-in-chief, Miranda Priestly.

Although “The Devil Wears Prada” has become a cultural touchstone over the past two decades, reviving a beloved property doesn’t always equate to box office dollars. (Legacy sequels like “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” “Karate Kid: Legends” and “Zoolander 2″ learned that the hard way.) “The Devil Wears Prada 2” succeeded not just by leaning into nostalgia but by making the story relevant for today. Plus, the follow-up film reunited the original cast of Streep, Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci.