The upcoming fashion comedy-drama The Devil Wears Prada 2 is continuing to impress box office experts, who now see the film as the surprise blockbuster of the summer. This sequel, which has actresses Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, and Anne Hathaway reprise their roles in the original 2006 classic, is on pace to have the second-highest opener in the US and Canada this year right behind The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. Just like Andrea “Andy” Sachs in the first film, it seemed like The Devil Wears Prada 2 would be a wallflower in the early summer lineup, but it has blossomed into a real contender. Anticipation for the Disney and 20th Century Studios production has notably risen as we head toward its US theatrical release on May 1, 2026.

Box office predictions for The Devil Wears Prada sequel continue to rise

The Devil Wears Prada 2 is expected to earn somewhere between $85 million and $100 million in its domestic opening weekend, according to an April 10 box office prediction from BoxOffice Pro. This is a welcome improvement over its prior $80 million to $95 million just a week prior.

This matches a similar box office projection from BoxOfficeTheory that believes the sequel will bring in $70 million to $105 million for its domestic opener according to a April 10 report. Its relatively more conservative lower bound but higher upper bound leaves room for the film to overperform, especially since the film has broad appeal as one of a few female-driven blockbusters in recent memory.

The report suggests that The Devil Wears Prada 2 could have “a breakout debut with potential for legs through Mother’s Day in its second frame and beyond into early summer.” The film effectively being a cast reunion, in addition to it bringing back the original movie’s director David Frankel and screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna, has become a large part of its appeal. It should also be noted that the last time Streep has been in a non-voiceover role was in 2019, and many moviegoers are eagerly awaiting her return. The actress was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Miranda Priestly in the first film.

The sequel’s plot will build on top of the original classic as Andy returns as a features editor for Miranda Priestly’s Runway magazine during a time when it faces a scandal and when, much like real life, fashion-based print media has lost ground to a digital landscape dominated by social media. Consequently, Miranda is forced to secure funding from Emily Charlton, who has become the head of a luxury brand but still harbors a desire for payback for how she was treated as a secretary at the magazine. Meanwhile, Andy is enticed to take the opportunity of writing an exposé on Miranda. Since this storyline doesn’t match the follow-up to the book that the original film is based on, fans of the source material will be curious to see how The Devil Wears Prada 2 updates the first movie with a modern twist.

Another positive for the sequel is that there’s very little competition from other films coming out around the same time. While the musical biopic Michael that releases on April 24 is looking like a strong box office contender, it is mostly targeting a different audience. The same goes for Mortal Kombat 2 releasing on May 8 and The Mandalorian & Grogu on May 22, both of which are in the action genre.

That said, a box office analysis for The Devil Wears Prada 2 from Deadline, which has a lower $66 million estimate for its domestic opener, believes that male interest “is in good shape … relative to Barbie, The Little Mermaid, and It Ends With Us.” So while the site agrees that the film’s multi-generational interest particularly from women over 25, it has enough mass appeal to attract casual moviegoers too. A survey conducted by Fandango on the most-anticipated movies for Summer 2026 reveals that the movie surprisingly ranks third, between Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey.