It's hard to imagine anyone other than Anne Hathaway playing the role of Andy Sachs in the hit fashion comedy The Devil Wears Prada, but according to the actress, studio executives had their eye on another leading lady for the part - Canada's own Rachel McAdams.
“I had to be patient. I wasn’t the first choice,” says the Oscar-winning star, who recently opened up to Variety about the film in honour of it's 10th anniversary. The publication reports that Rachel turned down the role numerous times before it finally landed on Anne's lap. “I had some buddies over. I remember running out in my living room, half dressed, screaming—I got ‘The Devil Wears Prada!’ I got ‘The Devil Wears Prada’!” recalls Anne about receiving the happy news.
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And while fate found its footing with Anne, studio executives almost missed out on casting Emily Blunt in the role of Andy's sidekick Emily. The British actress was in the final rounds of casting calls for the science fiction film Eragon when her agent had her tape an audition for The Devil Wears Prada on a whim. Director David Frankel wanted her for the part but had to wait to see if Ergaon panned out before offering her the role.
“I was in some dive club in London,” Emily tells Variety about receiving a call from David after the part in Eragon fell through. “I called him back from the bathroom!" Then, a few weeks later Emily took her seat at the movie's table read in New York.
The film's tour de force is unequivocally Meryl Streep. The actress's brilliant performance as an Anna Wintour-esque magazine editor scored her an Academy Award nomination and an endless parade of accolades.
For the first time, Meryl has revealed the inspiration behind Miranda's soft voice and the way she delivered the character's sharp tongue. “The voice I got from Clint Eastwood,” said the star, adding, “He never, ever, ever raises his voice and everyone has to lean in to listen, and he is automatically the most powerful person in the room."
Meryl notes in the interview: "But he is not funny. That I stole from Mike Nichols. The way the cruelest cutting remark, if it is delivered with a tiny self-amused curlicue of irony, is the most effective instruction, the most memorable correction, because everyone laughs, even the target. The walk, I’m afraid, is mine.”
