‘Emily in Paris’ creator dreamt of a life in the capital

Darren Star, the creator of Emily in Paris which has been panned by many French critics, said he wrote the Netflix series because he dreamt of an expat life in the French capital.

In an online masterclass released on Wednesday, October 14 as part of the Canneseries international series festival, the 59-year-old said he had wanted to explore “multi-culture” in doing the show and “get in touch” with a new generation.

The new series by the creator of Sex and the City and Beverly Hills 90210 is a romantic comedy about a young American marketing executive called Emily, played by Lily Collins, living the dream in the French capital.

A huge success, the show has nevertheless sparked a lot of irritation in France for replicating age-old, rose-tinted cliches of Paris and for its lack of realism.

“The idea’s been kicking around a long time. I was a little bit of a French geek in school, I’ve been a francophile since a young kid,” Star said.

“I had the dream of living in Paris and being an expatriate myself, by doing this series I got to have that experience,” he said, hoping there would be a second season.

Star took inspiration from a real-life American expatriate in Paris, Rebecca Leffler, who has worked as a film journalist and in advertising.

“I was able to get a lot of insight to do the character because we wanted to draw on someone with real experiences,” he said. – Rappler.com