“Are you out of your mind?”: Meryl Streep’s The Devil Wears Prada Casting Almost Didn’t Happen as “She’s never been funny a day in her life”
Meryl Streep is undeniably iconic and one of the most lauded actresses of her time who has earned immense commendation from fans for securing notable roles in the entertainment industry. However, what might come as a surprise to many is that Streep almost suffered a pushback in a 2006 film.
The producer of The Devil Wears Prada revealed that while he chose Meryl Streep for the role of Miranda Priestly, there were people around him telling him that there must be something wrong as he selected the Julia star who has never been funny.
Meryl Streep Casting in The Devil Wears Prada Almost Didn’t Happen
The Academy Award winner almost lost her role in The Devil Wears Prada as many believed that Meryl Streep wasn’t funny enough and the producer must be crazy to have chosen her as Miranda Priestly as the demanding and powerful magazine editor. If you’ve watched The Devil Wears Prada then you must understand how challenging it is to envision someone else than Streep saying “Details of your incompetence do not interest me.”
Producer Wendy Finerman, in a recent Hollywood Gold podcast episode (via Variety), mentioned that the Out of Africa star almost didn’t make it to the movie and said:
“Meryl, people thought we were crazy. I mean, I had people call me up and say, ‘Are you out of your mind? She’s never been funny da day in her life’… She has been funny and they were wrong…But this was clearly a different kind of world for her.”
However, the producer defended Meryl Streep and mentioned her contribution to The Devil Wears Prada and said that she was quite funny. The movie earned Streep an Oscar nomination and the producer himself admitted that no one could have ever played the role of Miranda Priestly the way Streep did.
Fans Defend and Acknowledge Meryl Streep’s Work in The Devil Wears Prada
Meryl Streep has indisputably proved how classic and iconic an actress can become with commitment and passion in the entertainment industry. Known for her captivating roles and intriguing movies, fans found it challenging to accept people saying that the Don’t Look Up star isn’t funny and expressed their strong opinion through comments on the post shared by Film Updates on X (earlier Twitter):
Meryl Streep’s casting in THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA was most probably the best thing that happened to the movie ..
— ShahniVerse (@callshahnila) December 9, 2023
But her character wasn’t even intended to be funny in the movie, it was Stanley Tucci and Emily Blunt’s characters that were the funny one
— KimEunSook said F U when she wrote MrSunshine (@Ending13Sad) December 9, 2023
Couldn’t imagine anyone else as Miranda
— CinemaBums (@Cinema_Bums) December 9, 2023
She was the life of the movie, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
— ShahniVerse (@callshahnila) December 9, 2023
Such an amazing actress! Never doubt Meryl STREEP!
— JPipo 👀 (@JPipo86) December 9, 2023
Not only fans but also her co-stars Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt believe that Meryl Streep is an incredible actress and was fun while they were filming the movie. In an interview with EW, Blunt explained that the Little Women actress wasn’t unapproachable, instead she was quite fun and interesting to work with.
The Devil Wears Prada is available on Max.
