1 Easter egg costume connects Meryl Streep’s characters from The Devil Wears Prada and Mamma Mia!

Meryl Streep starred The Devil Wears Prada as the cold and formidable Miranda Priestly, and two years later she played the spontaneous and free-spirited Donna Sheridan in Mom Mia!and although the characters couldn’t be more different, Miranda and Donna are connected through a costume detail. Miranda is editor-in-chief of a major fashion magazine, leading the cast of The Devil Wears Prada with an iron fist and beautiful shoes. Donna wears her signature baggy overalls as she runs the charming but run-down hotel in Greece featured in Mom Mia!

Streep’s characters exist in such different worlds that it’s hard to imagine what an interaction between Miranda and Donna would be like, but they are linked by a costume accent. Miranda remains fashionable and chic from start to finish The Devil Wears Pradabut Donna undergoes a radical transformation in a dream sequence. In a fantasy number in Mom Mia!Donna appears wearing an accessory that Miranda Priestly had already used in The Devil Wears Prada. This is a fun Easter egg that hints at Donna’s subconscious desires.

Donna Sheridan from Mamma Mia wears this accessory from Miranda Priestley from The Devil Wears Prada

Donna borrows Miranda’s look for this dream sequence

Miranda Priestly was a fashion icon, inspired by Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. She makes her memorable entrance to the Runway office in one of Miranda’s usually chic outfits, highlighted by a large pair of Gucci sunglasses. Miranda always looks sharp and in control The Devil Wears Prada. This contrasts sharply with Mom Mia!It’s Dona. However, despite their differences, Miranda’s sunglasses create a surprising connection between the two characters.

Donna’s world in Mom Mia! It’s never like that. Her hotel is quaint, but full of signs of deterioration: a leaky roof, rusty plumbing, and overgrown vegetation, which Donna is trying to manage on her own. However, in a fantasy sequence, Donna imagines how great it would be to not have to worry about finances, and in her fantasy, she is wearing Miranda Priestly’s iconic Gucci sunglasses.

What shared sunglasses say about Donna’s dream life in Mamma Mia!

Donna doesn’t want to be Miranda, but she wants that aspect of her life

Just before starting to sing “Money, Money, Money”, Donna shows her friends the hotel where “nothing works except [her.]”Donna imagines herself on a yacht in an exaggerated version of wealth and ease. First, Donna is in a flowing silk dress with a scarf billowing dramatically behind her, then in a chic swimsuit that features the same pair of Gucci sunglasses worn by Miranda Priestly.

Donna wearing Miranda Priestly sunglasses implies Donna covets Miranda’s power. In The Devil Wears PradaMiranda has the influence and reach to get what she wants. Miranda Priestly is endlessly quotable, making outrageous demands like a flight through a hurricane or advanced copies of Harry Potter. In Mom Mia!Donna can’t even flush the toilet for her guests. Miranda’s sunglasses symbolize Donna’s desire for the control and privilege that Miranda exerts effortlessly, creating an interesting connection between two of Meryl Streep’s iconic characters.