Sylvie Grateau (Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu) is the best thing about Emily In Paris, and deserves to have her own spin-off. Her boldness and chic style are captivating, and she commands every moment on screen. Her romances and plotlines are more mature than Emily’s (Lily Collins) and far more interesting. Her backstory is also complex and more developed than any of the show’s other characters. And, of course, as a woman in a male-dominated industry, there is generally a lot of material to examine. There are lots of ways a spin-off could happen with a character like Sylvie. One option is a prequel series where a young Sylvie is starting off her career in the marketing and fashion industries. Another is a straight spin-off following the further adventures of Sylvie after the events of Emily In Paris come to an end. Any way you look at it, there is more to explore with Sylvie Grateau.
Sylvie Grateau Is Fashionable and Fierce
On the surface, Sylvie Grateau is a glamorous high-end marketing executive with a lust for life, romance, and fashion. Delving deeper, she is a layered character with a lot of hefty experience and a low tolerance for BS, and she knows exactly what she wants and doesn’t want from life.Her backstory is ever-surprising as the seasons of Emily In Paris unfold, revealing more and more about her past, the career highs and lows, and the romances along the way.
The most obvious thing about Sylvie Grateau’s presence in Emily In Paris is the ridiculously chic, opulent, and sophisticated fashion she displays on the show every chance she gets. She epitomizes upscale glamor and carries her looks with confidence and grace. Beyond fashion, Sylvie is a strong and independent woman who has forged a successful marketing career, exactly as she has always envisioned for herself. She is the boss and an amazing boss at that — her relationships with longtime colleagues Luc (Bruno Gouery) and Julien (Samuel Arnold) encompass a perfect balance of respect and admiration. You can tell they genuinely desire to work for her and gain her approval in every aspect of work and life. Her relationship with Emily has come around as well over time and developed into more of a mentorship as Sylvie pushes Emily and the others to do their best work at all times. She may be the boss, but she is a creative collaborator who shows respect and gratitude to her employees without compromising her boss-level status.
She starts off quite stern and harsh, but as Emily In Paris explores Sylvie’s personal life, a lot more vulnerability comes to the surface. For instance, when dating a photographer who is much younger than her, she is mistaken for his mother. There is a moment of weakness that flashes on her face, but she finds her confidence to make a show of how she is desired by him. She always has a tough exterior and a blunt way of speaking with a sharp wit, but she is much more delicate and complex on the inside.
Her romances have been constantly surprising and revealing as the seasons progress. She has spent much of her life living in “the gray area”, as she puts it, married to Laurent G (Arnaud Binard) from afar, while openly exploring other romances on her own terms. The way she takes charge of her love life is an inspiration, and how she gives advice to Emily shows how much she enjoys this part of herself. “While you’re here, fall in love, make mistakes, leave a disastrous trip in your wake,” she tells her. She knows that mistakes and taking chances have made her stronger and fiercer and got her to where she is in life — at the top of her game.
What if Sylvie Grateau Got a Prequel?
Sylvie’s story begins long before Emily’s in Paris, and one option to explore more of it would be in the form of a Sylvie Grateau prequel, set before the days of Emily In Paris. In a show such as this, the role of Sylvie would have to be recast with a younger actor, much like it had to be done with the iconic role of Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) in the Sex and the City prequel, The Carrie Diaries. Much of the material for a young Sylvie show like this has already been touched upon in Emily In Paris, as much of Sylvie’s past resurfaces for her to deal with, whether it be her husband Laurent, her mother Heloise (Liliane Rovere), or her complicated career starting in the marketing and fashion industries.
In Season 4, Part 1 of Emily In Paris, Sylvie faces a dilemma. Louis de Leon (Pierre Deny), the head of fashion conglomerate JVMA, has been called out for sexual harassment in the workplace, and a journalist would like Sylvie to give a statement on the matter, as she worked closely with him for many years in her youth. Awkwardly, Louis is the lead investor in Laurent’s new Paris nightclub, and Sylvie speaking out would jeopardize that for her husband and for herself, as she wants him to have a reason to remain in Paris. Ultimately, she stands her moral ground and exposes Louis for his bad behavior. Perhaps a previous version of Sylvie didn’t stand up to this bully of a man, but as she’s matured and developed her confidence over the years, it becomes worth the risk for her to do the right thing. It would be interesting to explore more of this backstory to compare and contrast how a young Sylvie deals with this issue from that time to now, and how she moved past the trauma to become the boss of a company like Savoir.
It would also be amazing to explore her past personally and romantically. In Emily In Paris, we see Sylvie and Laurent as they are now, many years after getting married and exploring their open relationship. But how did they get to this point? How did a young Sylvie and Laurent forge such a strong open relationship by being apart? A sequel could show a young Sylvie filling in those blanks and how she’s become such an intricate character while maintaining her tough exterior.
Where Will Sylvie Grateau Go After ‘Emily in Paris’?
Sylvie has the capacity to change and grow as a person and is already showing how different she is from the first to the fourth season of Emily In Paris. Another option for a Sylvie spin-off would be to continue following the character after Emily’s adventures in Paris come to an end. She’s already gone from leading Savoir to starting her own Agence Grateau — but what is next for Sylvie’s career? Anything can happen with a character as fascinating and layered as Sylvie Grateau.
It can’t be understated how much of Sylvie Grateau’s magnetism is because of Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu’s confident and captivating performance. The way she delivers Sylvie’s acerbic wit in a blasé manner is endlessly watchable. Although this is Emily’s show, Sylvie has already proven to be the current show’s fan favorite. Giving people more of what they love seems like an obvious win. But having said that, a young Sylvie’s backstory is so complicated and intriguing that it would almost be a shame not to explore it further. Whether or not Emily In Paris has further longevity as a series, Sylvie Grateau will always have more stories to delve into.
Emily in Paris is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
