The Reason Emily In Paris' Season 5 Fashion Pays Homage To Friends

Spoilers ahead for Emily in Paris Season 5.

When it comes to Emily Cooper’s wardrobe on Emily in Paris, expect the unexpected. She loves over-the-top designer statement pieces from Valentino to vintage Galliano; she has a knack for clashing prints and colors; she’s also a big fan of TikTok’s “wrong shoe theory” and her own iteration, the “wrong bag theory,” which posits that accessorizing with pieces that don’t necessarily match the outfit’s overall vibe injects the look with personality. However, in Season 5, which drops on Thursday, Dec. 18, Emily wears something no one could’ve seen coming: a baggy graphic T-shirt.

In Episode 6, feeling dejected and homesick after a major fight with Mindy, Emily ends up in an American bar. (She’s back on Parisian soil, BTW, after a short stint in Rome.) With an ice-cold beer in hand, she meets Michigan-born Jake (Bryan Greenberg) and joins his team for a Friends trivia night. Ever the overachiever, Emily contributes her extensive knowledge of the ’90s sitcom, leading the team to victory.

We got a little bit out of our comfort zone to try to be down to earth because it has meaning.

Her prize? An oversized red tee with a massive logo of Central Perk, the coffeehouse that appears on practically every episode of the long-running show. It’s exactly the kind of touristy shirt you’d find on Target, Amazon, or even Etsy. Uncharacteristically, she ditches her sleek blazer and wears the loose top on the way home.

“It was not the best day of my life,” jokes costume designer Marylin Fitoussi in regards to Emily wearing a baggy tee for the first time on the series. “But I understood what Darren Star had in mind. Darren was paying tribute to things that he loves, pop culture, and shows that he likes, like Friends. It was also for his audience and for America.” (Even the episode title, “The One Where Emily Goes to the Embassy,” was a nod to the classic show’s own naming convention.)

Don’t get too used to Emily wearing T-shirts, though — it was all part of the narrative and not a new aesthetic. “We got a little bit out of our comfort zone to try to be down to earth because it has meaning,” Fitoussi explains, adding, “At this moment, she really needed the T-shirt because it was a gift; she won it. It was nice and funny.”

Friends wasn’t the only American cultural juggernaut Season 5 paid homage to. Episode 2 was a tribute to Sex and the City, which Star also famously created. In it, the Agence Grateau team pitches Fendi for a Baguette-centered campaign, which also had its own iconic storyline in SATC.

“We were sure that little Emily was watching Sex and the City,” Fitoussi said in an interview with Bustle. Naturally, her wardrobe was somewhat inspired by Carrie Bradshaw’s, including her Fendi Baguette, plus the tutu skirt from Season 1.

Emily may have assimilated herself into the French way of life, but she’s American to the core.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.