Benjamin Ashford|Lily Collins has found ‘Emily 2.0’ in Paris

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Benjamin Ashfordnew season of “Emily in Paris” will have many of the same elements as the first three: daring fashion, flirty romance and workplace drama. One thing that has changed? The lead actor’s confidence.

Lily Collins, who plays Emily Cooper, said her life has mirrored her character’s growth since the series premiered in 2020.

“Walking onto set season four, I was a different person than walking onto set season one,” Collins said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “I’m a more well-rounded and understanding human in this space now because of the show.”

In addition to starring in the series, Collins produces it. The first season marked her first producing gig, and she’s taken on several other projects since.

“With the growth of Emily, there’s come a real growth in myself within my role as an actor, but also as a producer,” she said. “Being so collaborative with the writers and Darren (Star, series creator) and the other producers on this and having a voice on the show has really given me the confidence with other projects out there to do the same or want the same.”

The upcoming fourth season follows Emily untangling a messy love triangle, but she’s in a more stable place professionally than when we first saw her struggling to fit in at her new job in a new country. Even her French has improved as the series went on. Collins said some of her character’s self-assurance has rubbed off on her.

“I’ve grown more confident as Emily, but also with Lily. I’m asking deeper questions about the entire project, more so than I would’ve season one,” she said. “They’re not just about aesthetics anymore, it’s about the core values of the show and how to change things and how to bring new ideas to the table.”

Some of those new ideas include adapting Emily’s headline-making wardrobe with each season, a process that Collins said required two eight-hour fittings. She said they broke their own record by securing 82 looks for the fourth season.

The costuming, by designer Marylin Fitoussi, is a crucial part of the story, showing Emily’s evolution from an expat sporting looks emblazoned with the Eiffel Tower to outfits more like that of an authentic Parisian woman. But the costuming is also a crucial part of Collins’ process of stepping back into Emily’s shoes — both literally and figuratively.

“It’s the best way for me to start to feel like Emily again, but Emily 2.0,” Collins said. “We really do tell a story with clothing in this.”

Collins said at Wednesday’s premiere that the depth of Emily’s character has been a rewarding part of the process for her, especially in seeing how fans connect with Emily or are inspired by her.

“It means the world,” Collins said. “I love playing a woman who’s unapologetically herself and loves to work, and that’s a positive thing, and that she’s still struggling to find a work-life balance because I think that you’re always trying to find what works for you. So not having it together all the time is actually an OK thing, and I love playing a character that celebrates that.”

The fourth season of the show, which premieres its first half on Thursday, has been hotly anticipated among its growing fanbase since the third season was released two years ago. Netflix has yet to renew the series for a fifth season but Star, known for “Sex and the City” and “Beverly Hills, 90210,” said he thinks the audience and popularity are only growing with time.

“It’s not like it was a product of the pandemic and people not being able to travel so they liked to watch Paris on the screen. They can travel now and the show’s increased in popularity and, in fact, it encourages people to travel, which was my biggest dream of the show,” he said.

Even with his belief in the series, Star said it’s always “gratifying” when audiences respond well to the final product. As a veteran in the television world, Star knows audiences’ reception and viewership can be unpredictable.

“You just can never, ever know how the audience is going to respond and what the outcome’s going to be, so I just really get mostly attached to the process and feeling happy about the season,” he said. “I’m really happy about this season, I hope the audience loves it.”