October 6, 2024

‘Emily in Paris’ Characters Ranked by Their Love of Mess

Emily #Emily

Warning: This post contains spoilers for major plot points in “Emily in Paris” Season 3.

“Emily in Paris” might be the fun, mindless binge of the holiday season, an opportunity for audiences to admire attractive men and audacious couture without splurging on a ticket to France.

But that’s not why you’re watching.

“Emily in Paris” fans, like the characters themselves, love mess. This is a show about shiny hot people who love chaos — one of Netflix’s most successful genres — and a show that viewers too sane to blow up their own lives can guiltlessly and joyfully binge. Season 3 is no different, with flirtations, affairs, hookups, and workplace drama, some of which is legitimate madness and some of which is just messy fools loving drama. Jobs are lost, relationships sabotaged, friendships tested, and at one point Luc (Bruno Gouery) proudly declares, “I am a star fucker.” It is glorious.

With that festive thesis in mind (at Christmas you tell the truth!), here is an extremely factual list of the main characters on “Emily in Paris,” ranked by their absolute love of mess.

Related Related 11. Benoit (Kevin Dias) A man and woman busking on the streets of Paris; still from "Emily in Paris"

A man and woman busking on the streets of Paris; still from "Emily in Paris"

Benoit is so unserious that Netflix barely has photos of him!

STÉPHANIE BRANCHU/NETFLIX

So unbothered and unbothersome that we almost forgot to include him on this list. Good luck with everything, buddy.

10. Alfie (Lucien Laviscount) A man in a suit and tie sits at a table at a fancy restaurant; still from "Emily in Paris"

A man in a suit and tie sits at a table at a fancy restaurant; still from "Emily in Paris"

Lucien Laviscount as Alfie in “Emily in Paris.”

STÉPHANIE BRANCHU/NETFLIX

Alfie is too English to fuck with chaos, which is why he checks out at even a hint of it. Protect this man and his peace!

9. Julien (Samuel Arnold) A man in a bright yellow suit poses for a photographer on the streets of Paris; still from "Emily in Paris"

A man in a bright yellow suit poses for a photographer on the streets of Paris; still from "Emily in Paris"

Samuel Arnold as Julien

STÉPHANIE BRANCHU/NETFLIX

Julien enjoys chaos as a spectator, but does not want it sullying his good name. By the end of Season 3 he’s officially had it with Emily’s (Lily Collins) messiness specifically , a woman who cannot making every single aspect of life in Paris about herself when Julien just wants to keep things professional and advance his career! Best of luck to him at the new job he definitely just accepted, and here’s to hoping his colleagues can keep it together.

8. Gabriel (Lucas Bravo) A man in a black button-down shirt sits across a table from someone, looking serious; still from "Emily in Paris"

A man in a black button-down shirt sits across a table from someone, looking serious; still from "Emily in Paris"

Lucas Bravo as Gabriel in “Emily in Paris”

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

On some level, Gabriel thinks he is living the most normal life ever, but he has all the symptoms for a chaos diagnosis: Being in love with multiple women while insisting on a monogamous relationship, maintaining a close friendship with the woman his girlfriend knows he slept with, a shotgun wedding, a sudden and overwhelming desire to have children and make everyone and everything in his life adjust to this goal. Maybe a better word is “selfish.”

7. Emily A woman with brown hair wearing a bright yellow bomber jacket and sitting on a set mimicking the interior of an airplane; still from "Emily in Paris"

A woman with brown hair wearing a bright yellow bomber jacket and sitting on a set mimicking the interior of an airplane; still from "Emily in Paris"

Lily Collins as Emily in “Emily in Paris”

MARIE ETCHEGOYEN/NETFLIX

Emily honestly thinks she is a chaos queen but what she is queen of is turning a mountain into un taupinière (Google says this is French for molehill). Remember how she spent all of Season 2 spinning out because “OMG you guys I slept with Gabriel and now he’s back with Camille!” but no one else cared — including and especially Gabriel and Camille (Camille Razat), who got back together! Emily loves to say things “got so complicated” when what she means is that she didn’t text her boyfriend or speak to her best friend who she lives with. Her behavior might be chaotic if it weren’t primarily lazy. Sit down, sweetie.

6. Nicolas (Paul Forman) A man in a gray suit taking a call in his office; still from "Emily in Paris"

A man in a gray suit taking a call in his office; still from "Emily in Paris"

Paul Forman as Nicolas in “Emily in Paris” Season 3

MARIE ETCHEGOYEN/NETFLIX

Igniting an old flame out of the blue to the point that her boyfriend with no personality dumps her? That’s chaos. But other than that, Nicolas is mostly just kind of rude; stealing Sylvie’s (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu) client and his constant demeanor with Emily are played off as “just business,” but there’s a way to conduct business without being a butthead.

5. Mindy (Ashley Park) A woman in a lime green, long-sleeved unitard with various vertical cutouts that show skin, sitting on a piano and singing into a microphone; still from "Emily in Paris"

A woman in a lime green, long-sleeved unitard with various vertical cutouts that show skin, sitting on a piano and singing into a microphone; still from "Emily in Paris"

Calling Dua Lipa “jazz” is pretty chaotic.

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

In some ways Mindy has no grasp on reality, like when she is adamant that Nicholas isn’t into her or when describing her three nights singing pop at a jazz club as “a career peak” — but when it comes to living chaotically, she knows what’s what. Did she start dating Nicholas like a day after Benoit dumped her? Sure, but it’s no skin off her back. Is she going to EuroVision with Benoit despite being in a full relationship with Nicholas and his ostentatious helicopter? Yeah, but don’t read into it! Mindy lives life by the edict of “It’s only weird if we make it weird,” and she refuses to make it weird.

4. Luc Close up on a man with curly gray hair in a gray-blue suit with a red shirt visible underneath, clapping; still from "Emily in Paris"

Close up on a man with curly gray hair in a gray-blue suit with a red shirt visible underneath, clapping; still from "Emily in Paris"

Bruno Gouery as Luc in “Emily in Paris”

STÉPHANIE BRANCHU/NETFLIX

Luc is not a chaos-forward individual, but on a subconscious level he deeply craves it. Why else can’t he shut up while clearly shocking Madeline with the news that Emily works for both her and Sylvie? What else could compel him to present Emily’s work to new clients? What but a profound, undying love for mess would have Luc repeatedly overexplaining that his date works for the phone company while trying to keep her cover as a Michelin reviewer? Luc’s life itself is not that chaotic, unless you count “The White Lotus” Season 2 as the natural epilogue to “Emily in Paris.”

3. Antoine (William Abadie) A man in a suit holding a glass in front of a restaurant's order counter; still from "Emily in Paris"

A man in a suit holding a glass in front of a restaurant's order counter; still from "Emily in Paris"

William Abadie as Antoine in “Emily in Paris”

STÉPHANIE BRANCHU/NETFLIX

Antoine has chilled out, but his record is one of casual (and sometimes creepy) chaos. The affair with Sylvie and flirting with Emily are in the past, but hiring their company and Alfie means he’s keeping everything close.

2. Sylvie A woman in a sleeveless v-neck black dress with a statement necklace, one hand on her hip implying attitude as she stands in front of a set of French doors; still from "Emily in Paris"

A woman in a sleeveless v-neck black dress with a statement necklace, one hand on her hip implying attitude as she stands in front of a set of French doors; still from "Emily in Paris"

Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu as Sylvie in “Emily in Paris”

MARIE ETCHEGOYEN/NETFLIX

Not only does Sylvie live and breathe mess, but she owns it. This woman has turned chaos into couture, a luxury brand and lifestyle that pairs with her impervious nature. The only reason she didn’t top this list is because she’s entirely unfazed by anything from some slight sexual manipulation of the building manager to having sex with her husband in a pool because of bees. This woman’s favorite month must be March, because she lives for madness.

1. Camille A blonde woman in a white blazer with black borders and gold chain between the pockets; still from "Emily in Paris"

A blonde woman in a white blazer with black borders and gold chain between the pockets; still from "Emily in Paris"

Emily in Paris. Camille Razat as Camille in episode 304 of Emily in Paris. Cr. Marie Etchegoyen/Netflix © 2022

MARIE ETCHEGOYEN/NETFLIX

For someone whose life was ostensibly pretty uneventful before Emily touched down at CDG airport, Camille has plunged headfirst into a truly chaotic existence. She pulled out some classic teen-movie mean girl moves in Season 2 when she found out about Emily and Gabriel, but once she had a taste she became insatiable. Few twists to this day can compare with the absurdity of Camille and Emily, two adult women, making a pact that they would not date Gabriel — a pact Camille proposed, pushed, and subsequently shattered when she got back with him — which she wanted all along! Camille uses one smile between Gabriel and Emily as carte blanche to have an affair with a Greek artist, then dodges any and all responsibility for it at her engagement party by telling Emily “Our secrets are what will keep us close” and diverting attention to Emily and Gabriel, who honestly had close to zero chemistry this season. She’s a pro!

“Emily in Paris” Season 3 is now streaming on Netflix.

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