Is Working With Anna Wintour Really Like The Devil Wears Prada? Some Of Her Former Assistants Explain

Being Anna Wintour’s assistant is not for the faint of heart, at least, that’s what The Devil Wears Prada will tell you. The novel, which was later adapted into a movie, follows Andrea Sachs, who becomes the assistant to the editor-in-chief of a fashion magazine, Miranda Priestly. While the material is considered fictional, the book is based on the author Lauren Weisberger’s real-life experience as Wintour’s assistant at Vogue. Now, some of her other former assistants are speaking out and revealing if their experiences were similar to the one recounted in the famed story.

In an interview with Vogue, four of Wintour’s assistants from over the years sat down to answer burning questions like what their job interviews were like, how demanding the job is, and what the famed fashion editor was really like. The assistants, all of whom have high-ranking positions at the fashion magazine now, were honest and open about the expectations of the gig, but were hesitant to compare their experiences to the ones shown in The Devil Wears Prada, even though it’s a question they get a lot. They said:

• Sache Taylor: "The first question is, ‘Is it just like the movie?’"
• Marley Marius: "I feel like the answer was kind of like, ‘No.’ I mean like…"
• Sammi Tapper: "I say, ‘Yes.’"
• Sache Taylor: "Yes, with an asterisk."

So it seems like there are similarities between their own experiences and the fictionalized version of the job, but it’s not exactly the same.

There are several likely reasons for this. The book was written over 20 years ago, so there are certainly things that have changed culturally over time, and the experience of one person won’t always reflect the entire job experience as a whole. Marley Marius, who is now Senior Editor of Features and News at Vogue, elaborated further slightly, saying:

For anyone who hasn’t seen the movie or read the book, Miranda Priestly is portrayed by Meryl Streep as a tyrannical leader who has outsized expectations for her assistants. She is overly particular about her food, she asks them to achieve the impossible, like getting the Harry Potter novel before it is released, and bullies them for their fashion sense. Her assistants lose their personal lives, as well as their minds in pursuit of pleasing her. So the movie isn’t exactly a flattering portrait of someone like Anna Wintour.

Despite all this, there remains an intrigue behind the position. People still vie for the heavily competitive role in hopes of rising up the ranks at Vogue, and Anna Wintour has seemingly embraced Streep's portrayal. She even appeared next to Streep dressed as Miranda Priestly on the cover of Vogue to help promote the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada. Whether or not Wintour is truly the personality that she appears to be in the film is seemingly still up for interpretation, but if anything, this has only created more mystique around her.

You can revisit one person’s fictionalized account of being Wintour’s assistant now by watching The Devil Wears Prada with a Hulu subscription. Fans of the original should also check out The Devil Wears Prada 2 when it hits theaters on May 1st. For more information on other exciting titles heading to the big screen this year, make sure to consult our 2026 movie schedule.