While Meryl Streep's portrayal of Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada captivated audiences, the real-life inspiration, Anna Wintour, has long remained an enigmatic figure. Now, as the fashion icon shares her first-ever Vogue cover with Streep to promote the upcoming sequel, three of her former assistants are pulling back the curtain on what it was truly like to work at the legendary magazine.
Wintour, who recently passed the Vogue editor-in-chief torch to Chloe Malle after nearly four decades, addressed the cinematic comparison in a recent BBC interview. "What I’m really interested in is the creative aspect of my job," she stated, leaving the parallels between her and Priestly for others to debate.
"She only asked personal questions," recalled Sache Taylor, Director of Special Events, about her interview with Wintour in 2019. "'What do you read? How do you spend your time?' Which I wasn't expecting."
Sammi Tapper, now Director of Operations and Content Strategy, shared a similar experience from her 2023 interview, noting Wintour wore sunglasses indoors throughout. "She made it very clear that it was going to be an intense job, which it proved to be."
Contrary to the film's depiction of a frosty reception for newcomer Andy Sachs, the former assistants emphasized a more mentor-mentee dynamic. The role structure also differed—Wintour typically had multiple assistants, with the first acting as a primary communication funnel for the office.
One of the film's central themes, the erosion of personal life, was met with nuance by the insiders. Tapper acknowledged having preparatory conversations with loved ones but found most people were "very excited for you." Marley Marius, a Senior Editor, reflected that working at Vogue fostered a strong sense of community. "For me, Vogue people are my community," she said.
The iconic scene of assistants fetching newspapers for Miranda? Largely a relic of the past. By 2017, Marius's duties involved "just setting up her breakfast and opening her office doors." However, Wintour maintains a preference for printed documents and meticulously reviews all editorial material sent home in her signature tote.
As for the dramatic "gird your loins" warning from the film? Taylor confirmed a subdued version exists, usually a brief heads-up from Wintour's driver before her arrival. The reality, it seems, is less about cinematic tension and more about the meticulous, demanding, and creatively charged world Wintour has cultivated at Vogue.