The Devil Wears Prada screenwriter confirms this is the worst character

That's all.

The Devil Wears Prada is one of our favourite films. The movie has remained a cult classic (and source for style inspiration) since it was first released in 2006. But after watching it a couple (dozen) more times, many people have begun to realise: Nate is kind of...not great. In fact, he's sort of the worst. Remember Nate? He was Andy's boyfriend for the majority of the film: green eyes, curly dark hair, regularly mocked Andy for her new interest in fashion and dismissed her hard work. Ringing any bells? Turns out, lots of people really don't like Nate these days - especially because of the birthday scene. https://twitter.com/thatssonatalie7/status/911763948327882752 https://twitter.com/elise_viola/status/912150727610511360 https://twitter.com/izzyangus/status/914262880240807936 https://twitter.com/urratgirl/status/908892027579801601 https://twitter.com/woahdorf/status/904366803031351296 https://twitter.com/SpencerAlthouse/status/840752384762609664 https://twitter.com/allysa_djfks/status/908582720422289408 Screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna admitted the role was "the biggest challenge to write" - and the one that was most talked about on set. She told Entertainment Weekly:

“That was a ‘girlfriend’ part, really. “That’s a part that a lot of women end up playing, the ‘why aren’t you home more,’ the naggy wife. "I have to say, that character was the biggest challenge to write, and oddly, the character [director David Frankel] and I talked about the most, because we wanted to make sure he wasn’t a pain in the ass, but he is the person who is trying to say, ‘Is this who you want to be morally?'”

The negativity towards Nate began over the last few years, when fans who first saw the movie in 2006 began to re-examine Andy and Nate's relationship with a more critical eye. Aline added:

“I think that now, however many years later, what people focus on is that he’s trying to restrict her ambition. “But her ambition is going towards something that she doesn’t really believe in, so he has a point. "The part that makes me giggly when I read is him being upset about his birthday. "It’s pretty whiney — but he does say later that it wasn’t what he was upset about.”

The screenwriter added that Adrian Grenier did a "heroic job" with the role of Nate, managing to toe the fine line of being the table-turning antithesis to Andy's career-driven narrative. She said:

“I think Adrian does a heroic job of seeming like that actual college boyfriend, that guy who’s a drummer in a cool band, and plays intramural rugby, and plays guitar, and maybe took a ceramics class. “I think Adrian just nails that, and it is a bit of a thankless role.”