<i>Emily in Paris</i> Creator Darren Star Explains the ‘Misunderstanding’ Behind Lucas Bravo’s Rumored Exit

THE RUNDOWN

• After Lucas Bravo sparked rumors that he would not be returning for another season of Emily in Paris, show creator Darren Star has clarified the “misunderstanding.”
• Star confirmed to Deadline that Bravo would indeed return for season 5, saying, “I think he was never intending not to come back.”
• Last fall, Bravo stated that he was unhappy with the progression of his character, Gabriel. “I’ve never been so far away from him,” he said at the time.

Months after Lucas Bravo expressed some disappointment in his character’s progression on Emily in Paris, which caused fans to speculate his return for season 5, show creator Darren Star is shedding some light on the situation.

In a new interview with Deadline, Star revealed that Bravo would indeed be returning for the Netflix show’s fifth season. “[Emily’s] love life is always complicated,” he said. “We have Marcello, Lucas Bravo is going to be back this season, so we have some interesting, surprising developments in terms of her love life.”

When asked if it was hard to get Bravo back to set after his comments, or if it was just a simple misunderstanding, he said, “I think the latter, just a misunderstanding. I think he was never intending not to come back.”

In an interview with IndieWire last fall, Bravo said that he had grown apart from his character Gabriel, a chef and Emily’s love interest. “The ‘sexy chef’ was very much part of me in season 1 and we grew apart season after season because of the choices he makes and because of the direction they make him take,” he said. “I’ve never been so far away from him.”

He continued, “In season 1, there was a lot of me in him. But as they made him kind of unaware of his surroundings, of the dynamic, always victimizing and always being completely lost in translation and oblivious to anything that is happening around him and being manipulated by everyone, it kind of became not fun for me to shoot or to see a character I love so much and brought me so much, being slowly turned into guacamole.”

Bravo (center) in Emily in Paris with co-stars Camille Razat (left) and Lily Collins (right).

Bravo also said that he tried voicing his concerns to no avail, which caused him to consider stepping away from the show entirely. “I tried for seasons to bring nuances but we don’t have much liberty on set,” he said candidly. “We cannot change a word or an emotion. They know what they want and we just have to comply. It makes me question if I want to be part of season 5... because my contract ends at season 4.”

But he still had positive things to say about the series overall. “I love the show,” he added. “It started everything for me... I’m not going to lie, I’ve been frustrated with the direction my character is taking. But we’ll see where it goes. The show is not over.”