Netflix Comedy Tackles Serious ‘Me Too’ Story with Complexity

Spoiler alert! The following story contains details from Part 1 of Season 4 of Netflix’s “Emily in Paris.”

“Emily in Paris” has always been saucy, stylish, and packed with drama. This season, the Netflix sitcom takes on a serious new look, tackling a significant Me Too storyline in the first half of Season 4 (now streaming). The new episodes focus extensively on Sylvie (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu), the tough French marketing executive who oversees American expat Emily (Lily Collins).

In the season premiere, Sylvie receives a call from a journalist investigating rampant sexual misconduct by Louis de Leon (Pierre Deny), the head of luxury brand JVMA. Initially hesitant to share her own experience of harassment, Sylvie’s reluctance is partly influenced by her husband Laurent’s (Arnaud Binard) plans to open a new nightclub with Louis.

However, driven by a desire to set an example for younger women and to confront such behavior, Sylvie decides to go public with her allegations. By the end of Part 1, Louis is considering resigning from JVMA.

For creator Darren Star, the challenge was to address such a crucial subject matter without compromising the show’s lighthearted tone.

“We talked a lot about how we wanted to feel like we could tell this story and not trivialize it, and also not sacrifice the tone of the show,” Star noted. “But the characters have gotten more grounded and complex as well. It’s not something I would’ve wanted to do in Season 2, but by Season 4, the audience is ready to go on any journey with these characters.”

Similar to Star’s previous monumental HBO series, “Sex and the City,” “Emily in Paris” is known for its outlandish fashion. This season, however, Leroy-Beaulieu advocated for Sylvie to don a more subdued wardrobe.

“I said, ‘I want the fashion to be quieter because I want it to be more about the character inside,’” the actress explained. “We built something really interesting for three seasons, but I wanted people to focus more on what she was going through than on her clothes.”

That nuance extended to the script. A standout scene from the new season’s fourth episode features Laurent tenderly asking Sylvie why she never told him about Louis’ harassment. Sylvie calmly responds, “I’m not a victim. I’ve worked my whole life to get to where I am. I wanted to write my own story, instead of being part of his.”

“I love that line,” Leroy-Beaulieu added. “It says so much about Sylvie and people who are brave. Obstacles aren’t there to destroy you but to make you grow. When you step out of the victim position, you learn so much about your strength and all the gifts that come from overcoming hardship.”

The remaining five episodes of Season 4 premiere on Sept. 12. Star teases a “powerful new enemy” in JVMA, which will impact Sylvie’s business moving forward. Emily’s best friend, Mindy (Ashley Park), will also feel the effects: She is dating Louis’ son, Nicolas (Paul Forman), and struggles to support him amid his father’s PR crisis without seeming complicit.

“Mindy’s a very strong character, with strong ideas and a strong sense of self,” Star observed. “At the same time, she has compassion for Nicolas and what he’s dealing with, especially when it comes to family.”

If you’re worried that the show has taken a somber turn, fear not. There are still plenty of office shenanigans, spicy love triangles, and picturesque scenes of Paris. Plus, serious issues have been woven into the fabric of the series since its debut in 2020.

“I feel like people are saying this is a left turn for us,” remarked Andrew Fleming, an executive producer, and director on the show. “But I remember in the first season, there’s a scene with Emily on a bridge during a commercial shoot. The woman is naked, and Emily brings up, ‘Is this sexist?’ They talked about Me Too even in Season 1.”

“So I feel like it’s in the DNA of the show to have a storyline like this. At its core, it’s about women in the workplace.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ‘Emily in Paris’: How the Netflix comedy gets serious with a ‘complex’ Me Too story

Source: USA TODAY