Adrian Grenier says he has his own theory about why he is not returning for ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’. In a new interview, the actor said he believes the backlash against Nate Cooper, his character in the 2006 hit, played a role in his absence from the sequel. Grenier said he would have liked to be involved in the new film, but he thinks fans’ reactions to Nate over the years might have worked against him.
Why Adrian Grenier missed ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’
According to Page Six, Grenier said he “of course” would have loved to return for the sequel, which is set to bring back Anne Hathaway as Andrea “Andy” Sachs and Meryl Streep as Miranda Priestly. He told the outlet, “We’re all fans of the movie, whether or not we’re in it. Obviously, it was a disappointment that I didn’t get the call to be in the sequel, but I also understand there’s some backlash with Nate, the character, so that might have something to do with it.”
Adrian Grenier on Nate Cooper backlash
Grenier’s comments point to the long-running debate around Nate Cooper, who many viewers saw as an unsupportive boyfriend in the original film. In ‘The Devil Wears Prada’, Andy’s personal life suffers as she tries to meet the demands of her boss at Runway magazine. Over time, fans sharply criticized Nate and described him as immature, selfish, and unwilling to support Andy’s career.Grenier admitted that the reaction caught him off guard. In a June 2021 interview with Entertainment Weekly, he said, “I didn’t see some of the subtleties and the nuance of this character and what it represented in the film until the wisdom of the masses came online and started to push against the character and throw him under the bus, and I got flak.”He added, “All those memes that came out were shocking to me.” Grenier also said that, looking back, “he’s very selfish and self-involved; it was all about him. He wasn’t extending himself to support Andy in her career.”Even so, Grenier did not sound fully convinced that fan backlash was the only reason he was left out. When Page Six suggested that Nate’s story may simply have reached its end, Grenier replied, “Either way, it’s a disappointment.” He then joked that the situation leaves room for “a beautiful spinoff in which Nate has his own film.”For now, Grenier is focused on promoting ‘Self Custody’, a short film now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
