20 details you probably missed in 'The Devil Wears Prada'

20 details you probably missed in 'The Devil Wears Prada'
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  • "The Devil Wears Prada" came out in 2006, but fans still may not have caught these sneaky details.

  • There are several fashion-related references throughout the movie.

  • Famous New York establishments and real publications also made their way into the movie.

Andy's planner confirms how quickly she became Miranda's first assistant.

finger pointing to a date in a planner in devil wears prada
Andy had her interview on March 13.20th Century Fox

When Andy is getting ready for her interview, she checks the note she made under March 13 that reads, "8 a.m. Elias-Clarke Human Resources."

It's mentioned throughout the film that Andy wants to work for a year before moving to another company, but she actually doesn't seem to make it that long.

Toward the end of the film, Andy and Miranda go to Paris Fashion Week. The fashion event takes place twice a year, but they attend the one that happens around September or October.

That means that Andy proved herself and earned a promotion to Miranda's first assistant in less than seven months.

Andy wrote about a variety of topics for her college newspaper.

(left) newspaper clipping titled "NU Women Take Back the Night" (right) newspaper clipping titled "Which bus stops here?"
The newspaper clippings feature fully written articles.20th Century Fox

Andy's articles from her college newspaper are mentioned a few times throughout the movie, including the opening scene where they're clearly shown with headlines and full paragraphs.

She tells Miranda that she won an award for one article about a janitors' union titled, "Garbage piles grow as negotiations crumble."

The other articles shown are about bus stops and Take Back the Night at Northwestern University, an event that aims to end sexual violence.

Andy probably should've known who Miranda Priestly was.

Anne Hathaway as Andy in Devil Wears Prada looking disheveled and holding a pice of paper
Andy was pretty unprepared for the interview.20th Century Fox

When Andy arrives for her interview, she doesn't know what position she's vying for.

She mentions that she already met with Sherry from human resources, so it's a little odd that she still knows so little about the job.

But even if she didn't know the exact job she was interviewing for within the large company, it still would've made sense for her to have done some research about who the major editors at the different publications are.

When she arrives at the Runway offices, she doesn't even know Miranda Priestly's name.

In an allusion to the title, Miranda Priestly is carrying a Prada bag in her first scene.

meryl streep as miranda holding a Runway book and gray prada bag in devil wears prada
The Prada reference comes early in the film.20th Century Fox

Miranda is first shown confidently walking into the Runway office as all her employees scatter to make things look perfect for her.

Before viewers even see her face, the shot pans up on Miranda's outfit, which fittingly includes a gray Prada purse, indicating that she is the "devil" in the film's title.

She's also carrying "The Book," which Emily later explains to Andy is a mock-up of the next Runway issue that's delivered to Miranda's house every night so she can make notes.

Runway magazine is based on Vogue.

meryl streep as miranda in devil wears prada looking unamused while flipping through a newspaper
The International Herald Tribune isn't a newspaper anymore.20th Century Fox

Although there is a real Runway magazine, the fictional one in the film isn't based on it.

"The Devil Wears Prada" is based on the book of the same name by Lauren Weisberger, which was inspired by the author's time as an assistant at Vogue.

There are also many references to real publications throughout the movie.

For example, Miranda is reading the International Herald Tribune when Andy arrives for her interview.

Although the paper stopped being published in 2013, it was in circulation when the film was made in 2006.

Nigel makes a comment about Andy that foreshadows the makeover he gives her later.

Stanley Tucci as Nigel in devil wears prada standing over miranda's desk
Stanley Tucci played Nigel20th Century Fox

When Nigel talks to Miranda after Andy's interview he asks, "Are we doing a before and after piece I didn't know about?"

Later in the film, Nigel helps give Andy a major makeover with new clothes, making her look like the "after" version of herself from the interview.

The glass doors in the office appear to be labeled incorrectly.

Andy pushing through a set of glass doors carrying a lot of stuff devil wears prada
The door says "push" on the opposite side that Andy is pushing from.20th Century Fox

When Andy returns to the Runway offices with her arms full of bags and coffee cups after running errands for Miranda, she pushes through the glass doors toward her boss' office.

But the handle on the opposite side of the doors reads "push," which usually implies that the side Andy is on would be "pull."

In another scene, Emily and another coworker leave through the doors, and they pull on the "push" side.

Everyone from Runway in the lunch line has a salad except for Andy.

staff at runway waiting in a lunch line devil wears prada
Andy's lunch stands out.20th Century Fox

On her first day, Andy gets corn chowder for lunch, and Nigel tells her that "cellulite" is one of the main ingredients.

The comment is one of many throughout the film that references an unhealthy obsession with thinness. Andy is later praised for dropping a size, and Emily mentions that she starves herself until she almost passes out to maintain her slender frame.

Based on the trays in the lunch line, it seems to be true that almost everyone at Runway conforms to these unhealthy beauty ideals. Every tray except for Andy's has a salad on it.

Andy mentions that she'll miss Nate's grilled cheeses, but the one he made earlier didn't look very appetizing.

hand holding a cast iron skillet with a cooked grilled cheese inside devil wears prada
The grilled cheese he made looked pretty burnt.20th Century Fox

Despite being a professional chef, Nate's cooking skills seem pretty subpar.

In one scene, he seems to burn a grilled cheese he makes for Andy, which he says contains "$8 worth of Jarlsberg."

During their final scene, Andy says that she'll miss his grilled cheeses when he moves for work, but she didn't even eat the burnt sandwich earlier in the movie.

Anne Hathaway's real mom appeared briefly in the film.

(left) hands holding a photo of anne hathaway as andy in devil wears prada with her parents (right) Kate McCauley Hathaway, Anne Hathaway, and Jerry Hathaway at the Empire State Pride Agenda's 15th Annual Fall Dinner in 2006
The dad in the photo is an actor, but it's her real mom.20th Century Fox; Jemal Countess/WireImage/Getty Images

When Andy is looking through photos, she pauses on one of her and her parents.

Actress Anne Hathaway is in the center of the picture, and her onscreen dad from the film, David Marshall Grant, is to her right. But instead of hiring an actress to pose as her mother, Hathaway's real mom, actress Kate McCauley Hathaway, appears to be on her left.

The theater marquee accurately mentions an actress that was in "Chicago."

marquee for musical chicago on broadway in nyc devil wears prada
Brooke Shields starred in "Chicago" in 2005.20th Century Fox

When Andy's dad comes to visit, they try to see "Chicago" together. But Andy has to spend most of the night finding Miranda a new flight to get her home during a hurricane.

When they walk into the theater, the sign above it reads, "Starring Brooke Shields."

Although she wasn't in the show in 2006 when the film takes place, the actress played Roxie Hart for a brief run in late 2005 when they may have filmed the scene.

There are framed covers of Runway throughout the magazine's office.

emily blunt as emily in devil wears prada standing in front of framed runway covers
There isn't any text on the covers.20th Century Fox

Framed covers of Runway can be spotted in the lobby, conference room, and Miranda's office.

But they only contain the cover images, unlike most real magazine covers that feature dates, article previews, and other callouts.

Miranda's steak is from a famous NYC restaurant.

exterior shot of smith and wollensky steak house in nyc devil wears prada
Smith and Wollensky steak house is a real restaurant.20th Century Fox

Andy goes to Smith and Wollensky to get Miranda's steak.

The restaurant is a real high-end steak house with a famous location in New York City.

Miranda's twins read an untitled version of the seventh "Harry Potter" book.

miranda's daughter reading unpublished seventh harry potter book on a train devil wears prada
The title wasn't released in real life yet.20th Century Fox

Andy successfully manages to get ahold of the unpublished manuscript for the final "Harry Potter" book for Miranda's twins.

When the twins are shown reading their copies on the train, the cover reads "Harry Potter Book 7."

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" wasn't published until July 2007, so the title wasn't publicly known when "The Devil Wears Prada" was being made.

Nate complains about the prices of a real high-end grocery store.

nate unpacking grocery bags from Dean and Deluca grocery store
Dean & DeLuca grocery store was pretty expensive.20th Century Fox

As he's unloading groceries, Nate jokes that Dean & DeLuca charges $5 for a single strawberry.

The real upscale grocer closed its New York location in 2019, and although it wasn't quite that expensive, the store was known for its high prices.

Andy's alma mater is mentioned frequently throughout the film.

anne hathaway as andy in devil wears prada wearing a northwestern sweatshirt
Andy went to Northwestern University in the movie.20th Century Fox

As she first mentions during her interview with Miranda, Andy graduated from Northwestern University, where she was the editor of the school's paper, The Daily Northwestern.

The university is known for its journalism school, so it makes sense Andy went there given her career aspirations.

She later wears a Northwestern sweatshirt, and she also has a magnet from the school on her fridge.

Miranda subtly alludes to a Supreme Court justice turnover while ditching a story.

meryl streep as miranda in devil wears prada sitting at her desk
There was one woman on the US Supreme Court when the film premiered.20th Century Fox

While in a meeting, Miranda says she wants to pull the piece on Supreme Court women.

She then corrects herself and says "woman."

In January 2006, Sandra Day O'Connor retired from her position on the US Supreme Court, leaving Ruth Bader Ginsburg as the only woman.

The benefit banners are hung on giant hangers.

red arrow pointing to a poster on a hanger outside a museum
The posters are very on theme.20th Century Fox

The huge banners outside the charity benefit Runway hosts are fittingly hung from giant, white hangers.

The date on Andy's phone doesn't make sense.

gloved hands holding a cell phone featuring a message from miranda devil wears prada
The phone says it's December 3.20th Century Fox

The Paris Fashion Week they attend toward the end of the film took place around September or October.

But when Miranda calls Andy, the date on her phone says December 3.

 

Andy interviews for a new job at a newspaper that hasn't been published since the 1960s.

red arrow pointing to the new york mirror sign as andy walks out of the office devil wears prada
The New York Mirror isn't a newspaper anymore.20th Century Fox

At the end of the movie, Andy interviews for a job at the New York Mirror.

But according to the Library of Congress, the newspaper stopped being published in 1963.

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