The Devil Wears Prada 2 is accused of ‘blatant racism’ as criticism mounts over sequel’s ‘lazy’ and ‘stereotypical’ portrayal of an Asian character

The studio behind new film The Devil Wears Prada 2 is facing mounting criticism across the far East for relying on perceived cultural stereotypes in its portrayal of an Asian character. 

Hollywood stars Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci have reprised their respective roles in director David Frankel’s much anticipated sequel to his 2006 satire about the inner-workings of the fashion industry.

But cinema-goers have expressed dismay with distributor 20th Century Studios over its handling of new character Jin Chao, an enthusiastic Asian intern played by Helen J Shen. 

An initial trailer featuring Chao, released in April, sparked immediate concern among east-Asian viewers, notably because of the connotations attached to her name, and the character’s portrayal as a highly educated and numerically gifted nerd.  

It’s understood that a faction of social media users believe the name bears a phonetic similarity to Ching Chong – a racist term used to denigrate Chinese immigrant workers based in western countries during the 19th century. 

According to Hong Kong’s Oriental Daily News, her name is “a symbolic racist slur” that suggests “contempt and discomfort towards Chinese accents and intonation”. 

The character’s clothing, demeanour, work ethic and various educational qualifications have also been cited as cultural cliches that convey ‘blatant racism’ towards east Asians.  

‘Child-like dress, glasses, overqualified, Ivy League credentials and at top of her game yet obsequious and insecure of her competency: these are not Asian American stereotypes, they’re white women’s fantasies,’ one viewer wrote on X.

A second added: ‘The Devil Wears Prada promotion up to this point was really great, but right before release, they suddenly hit us with blatant anti-Asian racism and flipped the car.’ 

Another wrote: ‘Why is The Devil Wears Prada 2 so blatantly racist? There are tons of gorgeous Asian women out there, and yet you deliberately picked an Asian woman with small eyes, yellow-toned skin, glasses, and the most stereotypical look possible. And her name is Jin Chao.’ 

A fourth accused 20th Century Fox of attempting to capitalise on the highly lucrative Asian market by shoehorning an Asian actress onto the cast-sheet. 

‘Chasing Chinese box office cash with The Devil Wears Prada 2, but naming the Asian assistant ‘Jin Chao’ (chingchong vibes) and dressing her like a lame nerd stereotype? What a bunch of braindead idiots. Director or screenwriter — f***ing stupid. Disgusting Hollywood s**t.’

A fifth raged: ‘Hollywood is so pathetic. I’m boycotting Devil Wears Prada 2 w Anne Hathaway. Sad as the 1st was one of my favorite movies.’

‘It isn’t just China: many Japanese internet users have reacted very negatively to a clip introducing an Asian character in The Devil Wears Prada 2,’ wrote a sixth. 

The offending clip, released on April 16, finds Chao enthusiastically introducing herself to Hathaway’s Andrea Sachs, with the intern dressed in muted grey clothing and wearing thick rimmed spectacles while outlining her suitability for the role. 

‘If you don’t want me, you can interview someone else. That’s totally fine,’ she says. ‘I did go to Yale, 3.86 GPA, lead soprano of the [Yale singing group the Whiffenpoofs], and my ACT score was 36 on the very first time.’ 

Tbe trailer has since been viewed more than 25 million times, with many of the offending responses coming from east Asian countries China, Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong. 

The film has already raised eyebrows by seemingly mocked billionaire Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his wife Lauren Sanchez after they funded the Met Gala.

While reviews for the sequel are still under embargo, those who have been to early screenings noticed a similarity between Sanchez and Emily Blunt’s character Emily, the social-climbing assistant to Meryl Streep’s Miranda Priestly.

In the sequel, Emily has left Runway magazine and is working for Christian Dior but is desperate to increase her status, dating a pompous billionaire tech mogul played by Justin Theroux.

Theroux’s character Benji is said to be based on a mashup of Bezos and Elon Musk, as per Variety, who is seen in flashbacks wearing layers of ‘fat’ prosthetics before coming into extreme wealth, losing weight and lavishly spending on his partner.

Benji’s first wife is billed as a philanthropist who uses her divorce payout to help others – in an apparent nod to Bezos’ ex MacKenzie Scott.

A subplot in Prada 2 sees Emily and Benji look into purchasing Runway, which could be a nod to the rumour that the Bezos and Sanchez have been trying to purchase Vogue’s publisher Condé Nast.

Sanchez previously claimed she ‘wished’ she had a stake in Conde Nast, while eyebrows were raised by Anna Wintour’s decision to put Sanchez on the digital cover last year in her wedding gown.

It’s also been reported that Prada 2’s screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna prepared the script by interviewing former and current Condé Nast employees.

A spokesperson for Blunt told Variety it was ‘absolutely not true’ that her character was based on Sánchez Bezos, while Disney had no comment on the matter.

The Devil Wears Prada 2 is released on April 30 in China and May 1 across the United States and United Kingdom.