Interview – Lily

The effervescent star of Emily in Paris talks to Bree Player about fashion, female friendship and her first year of marriage

- By Bree Player. Photographed by Beau Grealy

Lily Collins zooms marie claire from the stylish surroundings of the Los Angeles home she shares with her husband, Charlie McDowell, and their rescue dog, Redford. It's the picture of domestic bliss as the actor chats about the joys of working on Emily in Paris while McDowell keeps a low profile, coming onto screen occasionally in the background as he goes about his day. Their pug-terrier mix, on the other hand, is eager to make himself known. "This is Redford," Collins explains with a laugh when he pops up on her lap, vying for screen space.

The casual outfit the 33-year-old is wearing is a far cry from the eye-popping ensembles her character and other castmates don on the Netflix hit series. But if anyone can make a khaki jumper look like couture, it's Lily Collins. And with her new bangs framing her gorgeous face, the BritishAmerican actor has certainly got that effortlessly chic Parisian thing down pat.

Born to singer Phil Collins and his second wife, Jill Tavelman, Collins began acting at age two when she appeared in the BBC series Growing Pains. Her breakthrough role came in 2009, when she played alongside Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side, then she started clocking up leading lady roles: as Snow White in Mirror Mirror, in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, in Love, Rosie and in the television adaptation of Les Misérables. But it was Emily in Paris that made her a global sensation. Here, she reflects on the overnight success of the show, reveals what's in store for season three and explains how she took a very Emily Cooper approach when plann her own wedding.

You were married in September 2021. I imagine that you were a real planner but I could be wrong: maybe you were happy to let go of the reins and leave it in the hands of a professional?