Here's How Lily Collins Really Feels About The EIP & SATC Comparisons

Emily in Paris may be a huge deal for Netflix, but for series creator Darren Star, it’s just par for the course. Star has been a hitmaker since his first show, Beverly Hills 90210, launched a wave of primetime teen-focused dramas. But his biggest was Sex and the City, which ran for six seasons, two films, and two spinoffs (one of which is the ongoing And Just Like That). It’s only natural that Star’s latest hit, Emily in Paris, is often mentioned in the same sentence as Sex and the City. But how does Emily in Paris star Lily Collins feel about the comparisons?

At first glance, Emily in Paris might not so similar to the SATC playbook. The series begins with a naive marketing associate from Chicago being transferred to Paris on a whim despite not knowing French. It’s a far cry from the sophisticated Carrie Bradshaw, who, as a 30-something professional writer, has an established career in her city of choice and a longtime group of friends she can depend on.

But despite Emily seeming less together than Carrie, she too is a 30-something professional. (The fact that she reads younger is a reminder of how much has changed since SATC launched in 1999.) She is actually ludicrously good at her job, something her new boss at Savior, Sylvie, takes a long time to acknowledge. And like Carrie, she’s constantly trying to date, only to have it end in calamity. No one’s dumped Emily by sticky note (at least not yet!), but her exploits are enough to make Charlotte gasp, Miranda roll her eyes, and Samantha hoot with laughter.

Collins, who plays the titular Emily in the series, has heard people remarking on the resemblances between the two series since the show’s first season. And it turns out, she’s flattered just to be mentioned in the same sentence as the iconic show. When asked about the comparisons by E!, Collins said, “That is one that I will always take with utter love. I just love Carrie Bradshaw. I love Sarah Jessica [Parker].”

Collins also pointed out how the two shows have more in common than just the story of women in their 30s trying to make it in their careers and love. “We both are very much fashion shows,” she said. “They celebrate the cities in which they film, Paris and New York. They’re characters unto themselves, the fashion and the city.”