Human Artist Creates 'AI' Meme for Devil Wears Prada 2

SkimNews Take
The director's choice to commission a human artist for an AI-style meme highlights how the aesthetic of AI-generated content is becoming a distinct, recognizable visual style that can be intentionally replicated.
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- The Devil Wears Prada 2 – opened in theaters this weekend, featuring a meme of Miranda Priestley as a fast‑food worker.
- Alexis Franklin – painted the meme at director David Frankel’s request and posted a time‑lapse of the process on Instagram on Friday.
- David Frankel – commissioned a human artist to create an “AI‑style” image for the film, explicitly opting for a hand‑drawn piece instead of a prompt‑generated one.
- NYT Arts – covered the film’s visual design, noting seven distinct looks that define its aesthetic.
- Fans – flooded X and Instagram with relief‑filled comments, repeatedly noting that the “AI” meme was actually made by a real artist.
Why it matters: The studio gains goodwill as the meme, one of 7 visual concepts, draws massive social‑media buzz, reinforcing human‑crafted art over AI hype and showing advertisers that authentic creativity still drives audience engagement.




