How Emily In Paris‘ First Real Villain Helps Set Up Its Season 4 Cliffhanger

How Emily In Paris‘ First Real Villain Helps Set Up Its Season 4 Cliffhanger

As a seasoned movie reviewer who has spent years navigating the complex and often chaotic world of film, I must say that Emily in Paris has always been a delightful conundrum – a show that is as predictable as a well-trodden path, yet still manages to surprise with its quirky charm. This latest addition, Genevieve, has certainly stirred the pot and added a much-needed dash of drama to Emily’s otherwise sugarcoated life in Paris.


A key theme in the Netflix show “Emily in Paris“, a lighter version of Darren Star’s “Sex and the City“, revolves around the main character, played by Lily Collins, who struggles to find her footing as an American social media manager living and working in Paris.

In the years Emily has spent in Paris, she’s had some embarrassing moments. She once mixed up the European date format and messed up a fancy dinner reservation for her clients. Additionally, there was an instance where she unknowingly dated her love rival’s underage brother. Furthermore, despite spending four seasons there, Emily still struggles with the language, which has become a significant issue in her connection to the city.

Although Emily frequently makes mistakes, she has an endearing knack for changing negative situations so that adversaries quickly become supporters. For instance, her icy French superior Sylvie (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu), who sought to expel her from the country, now highly values her work. Similarly, Alfie (Lucien Laviscount), a disengaged classmate who showed no interest in Paris, has been drawn into a relationship with Emily.

All this to say, Emily Cooper doesn’t make enemies—until now!

In the debut of Emily in Paris’ fourth season’s second part, consisting of five fresh episodes, a new adversary emerges. Unlike previous challenges involving wining over another frosty French individual using a polished social media approach, this time the antagonist is someone she knows – a fellow American.

How Emily In Paris‘ First Real Villain Helps Set Up Its Season 4 Cliffhanger

Genevieve, portrayed by Thalia Besson, makes her debut as the 20-something, unbeknownst daughter of Sylvie’s husband. She begins working at Agence Grateau, assuming the role of Sylvie’s assistant. Emily, a seasoned professional, takes Genevieve under her wing as a protege. This unfolds concurrently with Emily’s recent breakup with Gabriel, a charismatic chef who has long captivated her since she arrived in Paris. However, Gabriel remains Emily’s client, and as we all know, Emily is meticulous about maintaining professional relationships.

At a shoot for Gabriel’s restaurant, tensions run high between the pair and he finally explodes at her, explaining that the reason their communication suffered as a couple was because they only ever talked in English (finally, Emily’s inability to retain a single French word is an issue). He rants at her in French before storming away, leaving Emily confused. 

At that moment, since coincidentally Genevieve knows French, she intervenes and translates Gabriel’s speech for Emily. Gabriel has expressed he doesn’t wish to meet her again anymore. Taking it literally as always, Emily responds by departing from the scene.

In reality, Gabriel didn’t make that statement. Genevieve fabricated it to eliminate Emily from the equation. She’s got her eyes set on Gabriel and is willing to go to great lengths to get him, even though at this point they’ve only spent an hour together in the kitchen (and Emily in Paris isn’t known for its subtle pacing).

The behavior of acting unkindly towards Gabriel, as shown by Emily earlier in the story, leads to a series of events where Emily attempts to hide her feelings for him and lets Genevieve pursue him instead. By the finale, Emily is found embracing a new Italian romance, which softens the blow when it’s revealed that she will be moving to Rome – meaning Emily from Paris will now become Emily in Rome!

How Emily In Paris‘ First Real Villain Helps Set Up Its Season 4 Cliffhanger

Now, let’s be real: in the grand scheme of villainy, Genevieve’s little translation lie sits well below, say, the misdeeds of Cersei Lannister or Hannibal Lecter. She’s just a girl in Paris trying to bag a hottie! But for Emily in Paris, her entry marks a startling moment of character development for a series that has all but used that concept as a vague guideline rather than a rule. For the first time, Emily is presented with an adversary that she can’t win over by getting them a thousand likes on Instagram. Emily’s office try-hard is no match for Genevieve’s freshly graduated college student having a European summer.  

In typical style reminiscent of “Emily in Paris,” Genevieve doesn’t end up claiming victory. By the finale, Gabriel politely rejects her feelings and is preparing to board a flight to Rome to reconcile with Emily – a fact she’s unaware of at this point. Instead, she’s immersed in her own “Lizzie McGuire” experience, cruising on the back of a Vespa with her latest interest, Marcello.

Genevieve’s determination gave an exciting twist to the usual refined French cuisine presented in Emily in Paris. It’s not hard to criticize Emily in Paris for being exactly what it is. However, that has always been the show’s intention! It’s a series designed for easy viewing, much like YouTube’s autoplay feature. But with Season 4, the show seems ready to be taken more seriously and demands a little more attention. Although it may not reach prestige TV standards, the suspense of Emily contemplating whether to change her Instagram handle from @EmilyInParis to @EmilyInRome has us on the edge of our seats, eagerly waiting for its resolution.

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2024-09-12 23:06

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