Emily In Paris’ Costume Designer Had Lily Collins “Trembling” Over One ’Fit

Spoilers ahead for Emily in Paris Season 4, Part 1.

Emily and Gabriel shippers, the time has come. In the first half of Emily in Paris Season 4, the will-they-won’t-they couple finally get together. Naturally, with any passionate new romance (at least on TV) comes an equally steamy wardrobe. Mesdames et messieurs, meet the spicier, naughtier Emily 2.0.

“I [wanted] to make her a little bit sexier,” costume designer Marylin Fitoussi tells Bustle of Emily’s “malicious, sexy, bold” outfits this season. In fact, Emily’s looks are so spicy, Lily Collins was nervous to put one item on. “It’s a red catsuit. Really sexy, really outrageous,” Fitoussi explains of the look (which you’ll see in Part 2!), adding, “I could hear her heart beating when she went to the set ... She was trembling.”

“Now the student is almost stronger than the teacher. It’s a style fight.”

At the rate the marketing whiz’s wardrobe is changing, especially as the latest season progresses, so could her love life. While there are no wedding bells on the horizon (yet), Fitoussi does have some theories on what Emily’s future wedding gown could look like.

“She’s a smart cookie, so she will pick up something bespoke, something out of the box. Maybe she won’t go with white,” she surmises. “I’m sure it will have a romantic touch because she is romantic; romantic, audacious, and unexpected.”

Even with access to an arsenal of bigwig designers, Fitoussi thinks Emily would go the more personal route. “She will probably design it herself. Maybe she will pay tribute and have the most perfect Pierre Cadault wedding dress,” she guesses. “Or maybe a tribute to Gossip Girl. Who knows?”

Just don’t expect her boss Sylvie to give her two cents on her bridal attire — Emily won’t need it. “Now the student is almost stronger than the teacher,” says the costume designer. “It’s a style fight.”

Below, Fitoussi discusses Emily’s fashion evolution, Mindy’s Eurovision outfit, and a villainous (or maybe not) new look for Camille.

It's been a while since Emily was branded “ringarde” by Pierre Cadault. How has Emily’s style evolved this season and who are her biggest style influences now?

This season is the revenge of style. This girl, a very smart cookie from Chicago, was watching Sylvie and Camille, the chic French icons, thinking, “One day, I will show you my way.” So we made her character very interesting this year because you have this mix and match of eclecticism, boldness, and thinking out of the box, combined with something more sexy, but still minimalist.

The most influential person on this show is Lily Collins herself. Lily and I enjoy it a lot. We know that some silhouettes will be enjoyed, some criticized, but all of them will get people talking.

Social media is already talking about Emily’s masquerade ball outfit, calling it Beetlejuice-inspired.

We did several tributes this season. It was, in a humble way, a tribute to My Fair Lady, with big and bold stripe statements. I did not pay my tribute to Beetlejuice, even if I’m really fond of the director. But if people can see Beetlejuice, I need to say that to Lily.

Since EIP creator Darren Star also worked on SATC, is it a conscious decision to keep Emily’s style separate from Carrie Bradshaw’s?

We paid our tribute to Carrie in Season 1 with the tutu at the first party. We paid tribute as the little sister to the oldest sister, wishing we’d have as much success as SATC. It’s still a reference. Honestly, I think it was the best fashion show of all time. It’s still my favorite one.

Is there any look in particular in Season 4 that’s a nod to Carrie?

Carrie doesn’t need any tribute. I’m paying tribute to Lily herself, her boldness and elegance. She knows she was criticized a lot for her style. She could have given up since Season 1 and asked me, “Please, Marylin, style me in a more sophisticated way or more normal way.” She never did that. She said, “We can’t please everybody. Let’s get stronger, bolder, and let’s go different.”

She was very supportive all the time. She’s much more fearless regarding fashion than before. She’s much more mature now. She’s in total control. She wears a beautiful Balmain outfit in a black pattern with big flowers.

We did her hairdo with a wet look and dark metallic green shadows. She looked stunning. Honestly, I was telling her, “I will date you.” It’s this strong silhouette that is the DNA of the new season. This balance between style, elegance, boldness, minimalism, and a touch of Cooper twist.

Some of the chicest characters in TV history have signature items: Carrie and her Manolos, Blair Waldorf and her colored tights. What would Emily’s be?

Maybe not a piece, but a sentence: “A splash of bad taste makes fashion spicy, and too much good taste can be boring.” It’s the quote for her and for the show. Dress to please yourself, be strong, be unique. Don’t follow the trends. I’m sorry to all the fashion magazines, but the audience understood that before any magazine. It was not about fashion and trends, it was about individuality, personality.

Being herself, unapologetically, even if she has an entire office, country, and world against her. She never gave up her love for a bold pattern, maximalism, and thinking out of the box.

You listed 14,000 pieces for Season 3. How many did you end up listing this time?

25,000.

Wow.

It took a team of five people one month to return everything, but it was worth it. This season, the expectations of the audience, actors, and Darren are very elevated.

There are so many naked trends this year, like freeing the nip, which don’t feel like Emily at all. Would she ever try it?

I spend a lot of time watching runways, trying to identify the trends and running far, far, far away from them. It’s why SATC was so interesting to look at — it avoided trends. I hope people in 20 years can watch this show and see that the fashion presented is not connected with any trend, specific years for shapes, color, et cetera.

Pivoting to Mindy, could you tease her Eurovision look in five words?

Sparkling, sexy, unexpected, surprisingly elegant.

Camille wears this black dress with a metallic bra in one of the Part 2 teaser photos. After everything she’s been through, it feels like she’s about to enter her villain era.

Probably. It’s a beautiful Kate Barton piece. It’s very unexpected. Camille is bold in her own way. She’s the most avant-garde character. Maybe it’s a season about villains and superheroes, but who will be the villain, and who will be the superhero? I hope it will surprise you.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.