Nearly 20 years after the original film became a cultural phenomenon, The Devil Wears Prada franchise has reached a major milestone. The combined box office earnings of both films have now surpassed $1 billion worldwide, thanks largely to the massive success of The Devil Wears Prada 2. The sequel has generated an impressive $676 million globally in just seven weeks of release, making it one of the highest-grossing films of 2026. Combined with the original movie’s $326.5 million worldwide total, the franchise has officially entered the billion-dollar club.
From its opening weekend, the sequel showed signs of becoming a major hit. The film debuted with $233.6 million worldwide, making it the second-largest Motion Picture Association global opening of the year, behind only Super Mario Galaxy Movie. In North America, it opened to $77 million, outperforming industry projections and even exceeding Disney’s own expectations. The movie continued to break records almost immediately. Within only nine days of release, The Devil Wears Prada 2 had already earned more domestically than the entire theatrical run of the 2006 original, which finished with $124.7 million in North America.
International audiences have been equally enthusiastic. The United Kingdom and Italy emerged as two of the film’s strongest overseas markets, while the sequel also became the top-performing non-local release in countries including Australia, Japan, Brazil, Germany, and South Korea. Industry analysts believe the film’s success is largely driven by the enduring popularity of the original movie. In the weeks leading up to the sequel’s release, streaming viewership of the first film reportedly surged by more than 400%, showing that fans were actively revisiting the story before returning to theaters.
A major factor behind the sequel’s strong reception was the decision to reunite the creative team and cast that made the original so beloved. Director David Frankel and screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna returned, alongside the film’s iconic stars: Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, and Stanley Tucci.
Rather than rebooting the franchise or introducing a completely new cast, the filmmakers chose to continue the story with the characters audiences had connected with for two decades. That decision appears to have paid off in a major way. The sequel was produced on a reported budget of $100 million, a relatively modest figure compared to many modern blockbuster films. Its enormous box office performance has already made it one of Disney’s most profitable releases of the year.
The film also benefited from a highly engaged audience. Reports indicate that women made up the majority of opening weekend ticket buyers, with many moviegoers specifically planning theater outings to see the film rather than discovering it casually.
The success of The Devil Wears Prada 2 is now being viewed as a blueprint for future legacy sequels. Instead of relying on larger budgets, expanded universes, or major reboots, the film succeeded by bringing back the original creative voices and delivering a continuation that longtime fans genuinely wanted to see.
With $676 million already earned and the movie still playing in theaters worldwide, the sequel's total is expected to climb even higher in the coming weeks. As a result, The Devil Wears Prada has transformed from a beloved fashion comedy into a billion-dollar franchise and one of the biggest box office success stories of 2026.
