Warning: This post contains spoilers for "Emily in Paris" Season 4.
"Emily in Paris" fans know that Sylvie Grateau has many layers underneath her tough exterior — and Season 4 continues to peel them back.
Part 1 of the new season dropped Aug. 15. Sylvie, played by Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, remains a powerhouse behind her namesake marketing agency, Agence Grateau. But that's not the only storyline that returns from last season.
After Louis de Leon (Pierre Deny) — CEO of the fictional luxury brand JVMA and Sylvie's former boss — invests in her husband's new nightclub, Sylvie's wariness of Louis only grows.
Episode 3 specifically sees her make an important decision that Leroy-Beaulieu hopes can "remind" women watching the show of their own power, she tells TODAY.com.
At the beginning of the season, Sylvie is approached multiple times by a reporter hoping to talk about her past with JVMA and Louis. (While not yet explicitly stated, Season 3 alluded to an inappropriate incident that occurred between Sylvie and Louis when she worked as his assistant.)
In the third episode, Sylvie receives a text message from the journalist asking for a quote about Louis that "could make a real difference."
Sylvie brushes off the ask at first. But she later tells her husband, Laurent (Arnaud Binard), about the exchange, explaining that she feels Louis is trying to buy her “silence” amid the newspaper's investigation.
Later in the episode, Sylvie receives another text message, thanking her for speaking out. She reads a preview of an article, revealing that she decided to go public with the sexual harassment she endured from Louis.
A partly translated version of the story shown on screen states that "female staff at JVMA try to avoid the brand closet" and charges Louis with a "long history of promising promotions in exchange for sexual favors," attributed to Sylvie.
In the next scene, she owns her decision, telling Mindy Chen (Ashley Park), "Men like Louis de Leon need to be held accountable for their actions."
In an interview with TODAY.com, Leroy-Beaulieu reflected on the choice her character made to come forward about quid pro quo sexual harassment.
“She kept it to herself for a long time, but not because she didn’t want to speak up,” she says. “I think it was more because, as she says, ‘I don’t want to be a victim … It’s something that’s so super painful, so maybe I don’t need to remind myself that I went through this pain all the time. Maybe I have to move forward and become who I have to become, and then maybe one day, I’m able to talk about it,’ which is what happened.”
Leroy-Beaulieu says she doesn't expect her character coming forward to be revolutionary to viewers: 2017 saw traction of the #MeToo movement in the U.S., which sparked a national reckoning with sexual abuse, harassment and rape, encouraging women to speak out. Other countries, like France, followed suit on their own timelines.
But what Leroy-Beaulieu does hope is that Sylvie's actions serve as a reminder that women "have to speak up."
"I don't pretend to be the character that's going to inspire anyone to do this, the people already doing it, which is great," the actor says. "I just think, you know, it's important to remind people that, yeah, we don't have to take these things."
Speaking out can also involve breaking generational patterns, which is explored in the show through the dynamic between Sylvie and her mom.
In Episode 4, Sylvie goes out to lunch with her mother, Héloïse, to ask for help finding a venue for her husband's nightclub as a result of the fallout with JVMA. Héloïse says Sylvie should have come to her instead of speaking with a reporter about the sexual harassment.
“I’m sure you would have been a great support," Sylvie responds, appearing to say it sarcastically.
Leroy-Beaulieu says that Sylvie's mom's response to her coming forward is "exactly what her generation would have done" — and "did, actually."
But the actor stresses the importance of women speaking out about traumatic events when it's best for them, and not for others — as long they "remember that there's a moment where you have to talk."
