Quotes

[On the most French thing about himself] Probably smoking after the gym. Although, wait, I don't want to encourage people to smoke.

[about Emily in Paris' portrayal of French stereotypes] As a French person, I wasn't offended. I think it's funny. Nothing we do is serious. We're not sending rocket ships to space or solving world hunger. It's entertainment. It's escapism. A stereotype is never born from nothing. Everything in the show is amplified because it's Darren Star's universe, but it's true. French people smoke after the gym. They have breakfast wine. They complain a lot. It's part of the charm.

[when asked what's his party trick, by Harper's Bazaar ] I like to fall asleep everywhere. I'm constantly tired.

[about traveling a lot as a child] We never lived for more than two years in a city. So, I've always had this new kid status. Each time we moved, I studied people so I would be able to fit in really quickly.

[on how he would market Emily in Paris to other men] When I watched Sex in the City, there's a lot of things I didn't know. And it's part of why I loved it. As you grow up in a patriarchal society with toxic masculinity, nobody tells you what women think and what they feel and what is right or wrong sexually or in a relationship. And to see it in a show that is so honest and unapologetic is a good teacher. So to begin to understand women, maybe we need to enjoy what they entertain themselves with.

[about whether he had a career as a model] Fake news. I did one runway when I was 16 and apparently that's enough for me to earn the title. I didn't like it. I was too young and too sensitive for such a cold industry with a lot of competition and not a lot of consideration.

[on working as a real-life chef] That was my side hustle; while I was going to auditions, I was a sous chef. It's a very similar job to acting. There's a lot of preparation and then, action! You need to be on point, and then you're left with that rush and the questions of what you did wrong or right. It's a tough job.

I think confidence is an act. If I'm being honest, I don't think anyone is ever really confident. If you're conscious, if you're aware of what life represents and what you represent, I think confidence is just an act and it's about who plays it better.

I was raised by a strong feminist figure.

[about Kim Catrall] She came to the premiere of Emily in Paris season three in Paris. She was sitting behind me and the screen disappeared. The entire screening I was like, 'Samantha Jones is sitting behind me.' But I never gathered the strength to go and say hi. That's an open wound.

[about the success of Emily in Paris] I had imposter syndrome and that level of visibility was hard for me to accept. That feeling made me kind of sad and anxious. It takes time to understand that it's just a little wave you have to surf to the best of your abilities. It started overnight and it can stop overnight, so I might as well enjoy the ride.

What does it mean to be good-looking, what norms, what standards? The only times I've been called a good-looking guy in my life, it was a kind of disrespectful familiarity. The concept of beauty or ugliness is not interesting.

[2021] I just quit. I've never been a big smoker. I like to smoke in a beautiful situation where the cigarette has a meaning, you know? This year I went on a big trek, and I was climbing a mountain for five hours. I arrived at the peak and I lit up a cigarette. This guy was like, 'Dude, you're smoking?' I was like, 'If I don't smoke it here, when do I smoke?'