"The Devil Wears Prada 2" Boycotted in China Due to Racism

China is boycotting "The Devil Wears Prada 2," which portrays a supporting character—Jin Chao, the new assistant to Anne Hathaway's Andrea Sachs—as a composite of Asian stereotypes.

A few days ago, 20th Century Studios posted a 38-second video on social media introducing the character of Jin Chao, played by Helen J. Shen. Many were outraged by the character's name, which sounds similar to a racial slur meaning "extremely ugly" or "extremely smelly." In the comments under the post, people expressed their indignation: “It’s already 2026, and they can’t even come up with a normal Chinese name,” “This movie literally repeats stereotypical memes,” “Racist name? Check. Cheap stereotypes? Check. And this is your ‘gratitude’ to the most important foreign box office market? You had a goldmine of fans ready to welcome the classics. Instead, you spat in our faces. This is your loss and your fault,” “I planned to see this movie, but after watching the trailer I found it racist, so I decided not to watch it,” “No! Nothing in the world will make me watch this movie!”

Besides her name, people were also confused by Jin Chao's outfit and overall appearance: "Why did they put that Chinese woman in such a ridiculous dress? American Chinese women, don't you have any self-respect?" "Chinese women don't look like that today. This look was popular among women before the 1970s." "It's 2026, and they're still playing into old stereotypes about Asians being boring and nerdy." "You cast some of the most beautiful actresses to play white women, but never Asian women. Why are you so afraid that Asian women might look prettier than white women?"

20th Century Studios has not yet made an official statement. As a reminder, filming for a sequel to the cult classic "The Devil Wears Prada" was announced in 2024. The same team as the first film is working on the sequel. Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Emily Blunt are also returning to their roles. The plot of the second film follows the lead character, Andrea Sachs, as she returns to Runway magazine to work with her former boss, Miranda Priestly, to save the publication from bankruptcy.

Photo: still from a video by 20th Century Studios