Who is Leslie Fremar? 'The Devil Wears Prada' real-life Emily breaks silence on movie, book betrayal
For years, fans of ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ have debated which parts of the story were rooted in reality and which scenes were simply fiction. Now, one of the people closest to that world has finally spoken up. Leslie Fremar, a longtime stylist who once worked at Vogue, has confirmed that she was the real-life inspiration behind the famously sharp assistant Emily Charlton, played on screen by Emily Blunt. Speaking on The Run-Through with Vogue, Fremar opened up about the connection, something she stayed quiet about for a long time. “She’s me—I am Emily,” she tells host Chloe Malle on the latest episode. “I don’t think I’ve ever really talked about it.” Fremar began her career at Vogue, working under the legendary Anna Wintour.
Back in 1999, she joined as Wintour’s second assistant and worked her way up to being the first assistant. During that time, Fremar ended up sharing a workspace with a young graduate named Lauren Weisberger, who had just stepped into a junior assistant position. The two sat side by side for about eight months. Weisberger eventually turned her experience into a novel in 2003, which went on to inspire the hit film that audiences can quote to this day. Looking back, Fremar recalled one particular line that made its way from real life into the story. “I definitely told her a million girls would kill for the job,” Fremar told Chloe. “That was definitely my line, because I actually really believed that, and I knew that she didn’t necessarily want to be there.” Interestingly, Fremar didn’t even know about the book while it was being written.
By the time she heard about it, she had already moved on from Vogue and was working at Prada as Director of Celebrity Relations. It was Wintour herself who handed her an early copy of the manuscript. “It was actually quite mean,” Fremar stated. “I think what got put into the world is a much lighter, nicer version of what she actually wrote.” She admitted that going through it “felt like a betrayal.” Since leaving Vogue, she and Weisberger have gone their separate ways, and it doesn’t sound like there’s been any attempt to reconnect. “I think it would be very awkward,” Fremar commented on the possibility of meeting again. “I don’t hold a grudge towards her, but… there’s nothing to be said.” She also addressed a few details from the story that fans have always loved. The glamorous Paris trip, for instance, didn’t happen the way it’s portrayed.
“Anna did not travel with her assistants. That is fiction.” She also dismissed the idea of a dramatic makeover for the character inspired by Weisberger. “I did not witness that.” Today, she works as a stylist for some of the biggest names in entertainment, but those early days clearly left a mark. She even shared how strict the office environment was back then. “There were rules passed down to me: I couldn’t eat at my desk. You couldn’t even go to the bathroom, because one of the assistants always had to be there,” she revealed. Despite everything, Fremar speaks highly of Wintour and the influence she had on her career. “Anna is my mentor, through and through,” she admitted. “I learned everything that I know from Anna.” Meanwhile, ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ is set to arrive in theaters on May 1. The sequel brings back Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Blunt, and Stanley Tucci.
