Ashley Park Had A Hilarious Fashion Fail During Emily In Paris Season 2

In Elite Daily’s I Can Explain… series, we’re asking celebrities to revisit their most memorable photos and tell us what really went down behind the scenes. In this piece, we chat with Ashley Park about all things Emily in Paris, including a very funny mishap she had while filming Season 2.

Emily in Paris teaches us that living a fun, flirty life abroad isn’t always as glamorous as it’s made out to be. Work is stressful, relationship are messy, and navigating a country where you don’t speak the language isn’t exactly ideal. Now, Ashley Park, who stars in the Netflix comedy as Mindy, is here to remind us that the behind-the-scenes action can sometimes be even less glam — but also just as exciting.

Emily (Lily Collins) may be the social media savant on the show, but IRL, Park’s Instagram feed is also pretty fire, featuring chic outfit posts, glimpses of her life in the theater world (she originated the role of Gretchen Wieners in Broadway’s Mean Girls, FYI), and — best of all for Netflix fans — behind-the-scenes shots from Emily in Paris.

Below, she shares details about some of her favorite photos from EIP, and even spills about what’s to come in Season 2.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

First Day On Set With Lily Collins

Elite Daily: What do you remember about your first day on the set of Emily in Paris?

Ashley Park: Oh my gosh. So many feelings. We look so sweet and innocent — not that we were that much younger, but I think it's just these two girls had no idea the ride they were about to go on. Our very first scene that we shot of the whole series was Mindy and Emily meeting — their little meet-cute on the bench — and this picture is from the third scene of that day, the third episode. What was also really fun about that day is, as Lily and Ashley were getting to know each other and get closer, so were Emily and Mindy within the story, too.

It really felt like the beginning of a home, in a sense. All the crew was getting to know each other and it was the first day for all of us, so we were all just so excited. We were like, “Oh my gosh, I can't believe this is our work right now.” I would pay to come and be a tourist and sit here with my friend at a cafe.

ED: You and Lily Collins seem very close. What was it like when you first met, and when did you realize you were going from just co-stars to actual, real-life friends?

AP: Honestly, instantaneously. We actually didn't meet in person until the very first table read when we were sitting down next to each other as Emily and Mindy. I had come to Paris with a little carry-on from other travels; I had a one-way ticket for this other trip that I was taking, got cast Emily in Paris and was like, “I guess I'm just going to go straight to Paris.” I'd gone and bought a dress and a hat, because I had nothing with me. And of course I was so intimidated and nervous. We were in this huge, gorgeous Parisian hotel and I had no idea what was going on and I was like, “I'm sure Lily has a million people to talk to. I won't bother her just yet.” And someone took me over to her and I remember her turning around and just lighting up. I immediately felt at home.

A lot of people came up to us and were like, "How many years have you guys known each other?” and “Oh my gosh, it's so fun that you guys are friends are doing this." And we were like, “We've known each other 45 minutes.” It's not often that you meet somebody who you realize, for both of us, who was maybe a missing part in each of our lives. It became sisterhood very quickly.

Behind The Scenes In Saint-Tropez

ED: You three look so cozy! What was going on this night?

AP: This is from our very first week of shooting Season 2. We started shooting in the gorgeous Cap Ferrat and Saint-Tropez area in the South of France. The entire time was just a pinch-me moment. And this was so fun, too, because we got to start Season 2 off with a girls' trip, so these are just three happy girls being like, “What is going on right now?”

ED: Let’s talk about your outfits.

AP: We are in our coats that were our best friends for the entire season. France was just very cold. We started filming in April and we were acting like it was the summer, so especially at nighttime, we were always in our cozies. What's very funny about this — keeping warm with each other, huddling close — is that the dress I'm wearing, that is a full latex white dress. We were filming all night — oh my gosh, this is the opposite of the glam world — I remember getting up, and because it was so cold and then warm and all this stuff, my latex dress just split. And we had one more shot to film, so I couldn't have a split dress. I remember Lily's dressers and my dressers just trying to duct tape it from the inside, and we were like, “This is quite funny.”

ED: Since Camille Razat is French, has she helped you embrace life in France?

AP: Absolutely. Camille was such a guide, especially for me. I think that especially during Season 1, it was my first time in Paris and the running joke was that I was Emily in Paris, living it in real life with all the different experiences, and she really was how Camille is in the show. She's warm and she's so fun and vivacious and she really knows how to have a good time. She would take me to all sorts of different places and restaurants. One time, I was like, "You know what? I took French in school. I need to re-up my French. Camille, let's get dinner and let's learn. Can you be my French tutor?" We just ended up having four bottles of wine and just gabbing and gabbing, even if we couldn't understand each other, and I did not learn a lot of French that night.

Mindy’s Season 2 Adventure

ED: Since this is a still from EIP Season 2, what can you tease about what’s going on here?

AP: Well, Mindy does get a new singing gig, so she's running toward that. I think you can tell by my face, she's running a little late. What I love about this scene, too, is this is on the Pont des Arts bridge, which we did a lot of shooting on, which is a bridge that I walked on a lot, just as Ashley. And so it felt like, “Oh my gosh, I feel local now.” That we were filming on it felt really special.

In this scene, I'm about to sing one of my favorite songs from a Broadway show I really love, a really special rendition of it. I was really excited that we got to do this one and it goes really beautifully in with not just Mindy's story, but also with a lot of the other storylines, too. And Katina Medina Mora, who is our director for this episode, really shot it beautifully.

What I will also tell you is that this is the day that I got tonsillitis because it's freezing on this bridge. We had to shut down production because it was pouring rain, and so me and Lily in our costumes just ran to her apartment that was nearby. That was a special day.

ED: What else can you tease about Season 2?

AP: The fashion in Season 2 reaches even more chic elevated heights than in Season 1. As for Mindy, I think the question I was asked the most last season was if Mindy was going to get any of her own love interests, and if she was going to sing more. And I'm just going to tell you that if you asked that question, you will be happy when you watch Season 2.

We're really just genuinely happy that people all over the world seem to love the show and it brought them joy, especially last year. And so, I think we're just excited this season is bigger and better and brighter.

Emily in Paris Season 2 premieres Wednesday, Dec. 22, on Netflix.