If you know the (rather fabulous) name Lucas Bravo, it's probably because you're obsessed with watching Emily In Paris.
The French actor got his big break on the hugely popular Netflix series, but if you expect him to be a fan too — think again.
In an interview that has since gone viral, Bravo told French outlet Le Figaro that he isn't even sure he wants to return to Emily In Paris for season five.
"It's good entertainment, an escape. But I feel the need to raise awareness a little about what I'm talking about," he said. "The filming of this series lasts five months. Do I want to sacrifice them to do something that doesn't excite me?"
Bravo raised doubts over whether he will come back next season, saying "it will depend on the script."
The actor shared that he wasn't thrilled with the material he was given last season. "The writing was a little bit in this '90s idea where the lovers break up, kiss, and break up again," he said.
"Everything is based on miscommunication. It's a little archaic."
Watch the season four trailer for this 'little archaic' show. Post continued after video.
Bravo didn't pull any punches when he assessed how the Emily In Paris writers had underestimated their audience. "People can see that mechanism coming from miles away. And I don't want to be part of a machine that tends to disregard the intelligence of its audience."
Yikes. I know Emily In Paris isn't quite prestige TV but it's still a fun watch all the same.
This isn't the first time Bravo has shared some divisive views on the show that gave him his start. He gave another interview where he complained about his character, Gabriel, which tbh, I can't blame him for.
"The 'sexy chef' was very much part of me in season one and we grew apart season after season because of the choices he makes and because of the direction they make him take. I've never been so far away from him," Bravo told Indie Wire.
"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. I really grew apart from him."
Okay, he lost me at guacamole, but he's clearly fed up with playing Emily's love interest and the creative limitations he claims are being enforced. "There is only so much I can do in the limits of a script," he added.
"I tried for seasons to bring nuances but we don't have much liberty on set. We cannot change a word or an emotion. They know what they want and we just have to comply."
Again, the actor said he has doubts about doing another season, revealing that his "contract ends at season four," he shared.
"Three seasons playing melancholic, sad, depressed, and lost is not fun anymore. It's a comedy, everybody is having fun around me, everybody is jumping around, and I'm just slowly sinking into god knows what."
Look, I can see Bravo's points here as Gabriel has become noticeably less fun to watch each season, with many fans now favouring Emily's other love interests Alfie and Marcello.
At the same time, Bravo doesn't seem to care about how much diminishes this show that is beloved by countless, mostly female fans.
"I love the show and the people in it. With saying that, I feel like I am not being nice or grateful, but when you love something you want it to be… you want the best version of it. I'm not going to lie, I've been frustrated with the direction my character is taking."
Back in August, Bravo told The Independent that he being cast on Emily In Paris wasn't all it's cracked up to be.
"Professionally and financially speaking, I wasn't where I wanted to be [before landing Emily in Paris]," the 36-year-old said. "At the same time, I felt like I knew myself better back then. I had more clarity and a lot less anxiety."
In the rather glum interview, he clarified he was "doing well" and "fine".
Of course, Bravo is entitled to his own opinions on Emily In Paris, but whether he has to put down the show that basically gave him his career is another matter entirely — especially a series that especially resonates with women.
The type of pop culture that women consume has long been dismissed by more high-brow media, and often by men. Whether it's serious musicians moaning about the appeal of girly pop groups like the Spice Girls or One Direction, or the belittling of TV shows like Gossip Girl, Sex and the City, Grey's Anatomy and well, most reality TV.
In the years since being cast in Emily In Paris, Bravo has been afforded some acting opportunities that he arguably may have missed without his rising celebrity status. He starred alongside George Clooney and Julia Roberts in Ticket to Paradise and scored a leading role in Mrs Harris Goes to Paris.
The actor's dismissal of Emily In Paris reminds me of Regè-Jean Page, who decided to quit another female-targeted Netflix series, Bridgerton, after just one season despite its runaway success and the fans he had amassed for the role.
"I signed up to do a job and I did the job," he later told Vanity Fair about his shock exit.
"[After] we finished the story, the temptation would be to roll with the distractions and go, 'Oh, well, the story went really well so we can kind of change this up and make some other stuff up, I guess.'"
Page didn't directly diss Bridgerton but the language of 'make other stuff up' to describe one of Netflix's most successful and beloved shows read rather demeaning to the writers of the show and condescending to the fans who adored his character, the Duke.
The actor's career hasn't exactly blossomed since his exit. In contrast, Jonathan Bailey has stayed loyal to Bridgerton and his film career has skyrocketed with upcoming roles in Wicked and Jurassic World.
The issue with Bravo's comments is that some of his statements read as disrespectful to fans, it's not so much about his growing disdain towards his character. Most fans would agree that the hot chef next door has lost his gleam in recent seasons.
And I have a rather rogue theory that part of that is due to Bravo's insistence to grow out his hair. Viewers have grown confused over the hair evolution of the once clean-cut French chef to this long-haired style.
It was a decision that seemingly the actor made himself.
"I have been trying to have longer hair on the show since season 1," he told The Hollywood Reporter.
"And since only one day passes [between seasons three and four], if I need to have long hair on a season then I need to go through the transition phase where you have s**t hair and it doesn't look like anything."
Bravo is aware of how bad his hair looked in season four but he seemingly… does not care. "So [I decided] to sacrifice season four in order to have long hair in season five," he said.
"I just wanted something different. I am always clean-shaven and five months of [constantly] shaving is not very nice for your skin or your soul."
Again, the actor expressed an odd level of contempt for fans of the show in their disapproval of his changing look. "I don't really like the clean-shaven shortcut look," he told PEOPLE.
"I feel like every time I try to be myself and let things grow, people don't really want me to look like anything else than Gabriel."
Hmmmm, well since you are playing Gabriel, this would make sense, Lucas.
Is he trying to get fired by refusing to cut his hair?? This is a theory I will happily spread.
When the next season of Emily In Paris drops, I won't be expecting to see Gabriel there — especially with short hair.
Feature image: Getty.
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