Interview: Lily Collins and Darren Star on life and Netflix’s Emily In Paris

Darren: This stems from the female friendships and the women I grew up with, such as my mother and sister. Beyond that, I don’t try to think of these characters from a particular female point of view but rather from my own viewpoint and try to project them into my own shoes. Men and women share a lot of universal feeling. But at the same time, women are really fun to write. Women are expressive with their emotions, have a great sense of humour and are analytical, making them great for somebody who likes to write characters that talk a lot. I also like writing empowered, strong women as I enjoy watching these characters.

Darren: Lily is a fantastic actor. I’ve seen her work and admired it a lot. When I met Lily I was just taken by who she was personally and already I could see that she has some of the qualities I wanted in Emily. You hire an actress to be the lead of the show and you want to be inspired by the person who is in the role. I felt that Lily would come in and inspire the character for me, which she did. I also thought, who would I want to spend four months in Paris with? Lily has all the great qualities of Emily and more but she is also able to play Emily’s toughness and determination. That is something I thought she did brilliantly.

Lily: I’m definitely someone who likes to see the bright side of the situation so I am innately optimistic. I am also very passionate about what I do, people I love and any experience I’ve been a part of. I’m very determined so I don’t take a “no” as a finite rejection, but maybe it is not right now or I have to pivot in some way. I am super in love with what I do and I love to work, it makes me happy. Emily literally says that too so I think that we are very similar in that way.

Lily: I moved from England to Los Angeles when I was five turning six, so obviously that is very different from a woman in her mid-twenties. But at that age, it was still super pivotal to growing up and wanting to fit in. There were a lot of cultural differences, accents and sometimes the way I dressed. Ultimately, I changed my accent the more I heard my friends talking since I was so young. I dealt with the move. But I definitely still feel the fish-out-of-water experience every time I start a new project. You go to a new set, you don’t know anyone and the crew, there are pressure and creative anxiety surrounding it. You want to get along with people but you also acknowledge that you are there to work and have a common goal. It is very much that experience every time I start a new job, but it is part of the job and I love it as much as it is strange sometimes.

Lily: Well I think they were dismissed not because she was a woman, I think they were dismissed because the boss didn’t necessarily agree with her views and the way she was coming into his office as a new employee. I think Emily does a really great job of vocalising herself, her opinions and thoughts. She does so on the perfume campaign and she continues to do so in the room when he comes in to ask about the commercial. Emily does a really good job vocalising herself as a strong woman that Sylvie is actually taken aback by that. I think she admits Emily for speaking up but I don’t think she’s ever had an employee speak up that way and so she rejects it because it is unexpected and not thought of before. Sylvie ultimately embraces Emily but it takes her a second to warm up and get there. Emily does a really good job of vocalising herself and as she becomes more familiar with herself, her co-workers, the cultural differences, I think we will see her do that more and more. And I love playing a character that does that because it encourages me to do that more in my own life.

Lily: She’s bright, bold, fun and a little obvious and her outfits do just that. Emily isn’t afraid to take risks and chances in her professional and romantic life and her outfits [expresses] that. She mixes colours, prints, designs and it is very much her aesthetics.

Writer’s note: Costume designer Patricia Field, who styled for Sex and the City, has designed the wardrobe for Emily in Paris too.

Lily: Bright, bold and eclectic.

Darren: Good answer.

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