--- title: Emily Blunt Sets the Record Straight About Miranda Priestly description: According to Blunt, Meryl Streep's inspiration for the 'Devil Wears Prada' character of Miranda Priestly is not who we all think it was. canonical: https://time.com/5485390/meryl-streep-miranda-priestly/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-12-20T16:23:54.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:47:11.558Z og:title: Emily Blunt Sets the Record Straight About Miranda Priestly og:description: She's not actually based on Anna Wintour og:url: https://time.com/5485390/meryl-streep-miranda-priestly/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Emily Blunt Sets the Record Straight About Miranda Priestly twitter:description: She's not actually based on Anna Wintour twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # Emily Blunt Sets the Record Straight About Who Meryl Streep Modeled Miranda Priestly After > Sponsored content. 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It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=72810f98-2593-4dd9-8296-3eb1393ae3e8&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Mary Poppins Returns Official Trailer [Watch (HLS stream): Mary Poppins Returns Official Trailer](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/XzXrKILI.m3u8) (2:26)  _Published 2018-11-28. Mary Poppins Returns Official Trailer_  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Dec 20, 2018 4:23 PM UTC  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Dec 20, 2018 4:23 PM UTC Up until now, many people have been under the impression that [Meryl Streep](http://time.com/5391414/meryl-streep-us-open/)‘s character in _The Devil Wears Prada_ — the notoriously discerning top fashion editor [Miranda Priestly](http://time.com/2801704/maleficent-villains-wicked-witch-catwoman/item/miranda-priestly-devil-wears-prada/) — was modeled after _Vogue_‘s [Anna Wintour](http://time.com/5272579/stephen-colbert-anna-wintour-met-gala-2018/). But [_Mary Poppins Returns_](http://time.com/5484129/review-mary-poppins-returns-blunt/) star [Emily Blunt](http://time.com/5483158/emily-blunt-john-krasinski-first-date/), who played Streep’s hard-working assistant in the beloved 2006 movie, is here to set the record straight. In a new interview [with NPR’s Terry Gross](https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=677643146), Blunt reflected on getting the gig in the movie, which helped put her on the Hollywood map. When Gross mentioned Streep’s character as a version of Anna Wintour, though, Blunt had to make a clarification. “Although Meryl didn’t actually base it on Anna Wintour — well, she told Anna that,” Blunt said. “She based it on two men in Hollywood that she knew — who will remain nameless, but I know who they are.” Blunt also recalled the audition process for that game-changing role; it turns out it was a very last-minute chance. “I remember I was out in LA, which I found altogether overwhelming anyway because it was very new. And I was 22, I think,” she said. --- > “” --- While _The Devil Wears Prada_ was the first time that Blunt and Streep teamed up onscreen, they would then go on to work together in both [_Into the Woods_](http://time.com/3647510/review-into-the-woods-a-disney-musical-for-adults-of-all-ages/) and the new _Mary Poppins Returns_, which features Streep as Cousin Topsy. ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] I honestly can't remember why we kept most of this stuff to begin with. Don't you remember that kite? We used to love flying that with mother and father. Those days are long behind me. [ MUSIC ] As I live and breathe. [ MUSIC ] I was flying the kite, and it got caught on a nanny. [ SOUND ] Mary. Poppins. You came back. You seemed hardly to have aged at all. Really, one never discusses a woman's age, Michael. I would have hoped I taught you better. [ MUSIC ] What brings you here after all this time? Same thing that brought me the first time. I've come to look after the Banks children. Us? Yes you too. [ MUSIC ] We're about to lose our home. Everything has fallen to pieces since your mother. [ MUSIC ] I miss mother. Nothing's gone forever only out of place [ MUSIC ] It's good that you come along when you did, Mary Poppins. [ MUSIC ] How did you do that? Do what? [ MUSIC ] So you've been off filling the children's heads with stuff and nonsense? You've forgotten what it's like to be a child. [ MUSIC ] Everything is possible. Even the impossible. 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