Aahana Swrup
‘Emily in Paris’ presents a kaleidoscope of complicated relationship dynamics through the narratives of the titular protagonist and her Parisian gang. Among these interpersonal relationships, Sylvie and her husband, Laurent, sport one of the more complex dynamics. Although the two are legally married, the romance in their relationship seems to have fizzled out at least in the beginning of the series. As a result, they stay separated in their personal lives, open to pursue their respective romantic entanglements freely. That is, until the spouses decide to give their own connection one more chance in season 3. Even so, the road ahead of them remains rocky and inevitably lands them right where they left off. As a result, by season 5, their dynamic is more labyrinthine than ever, as feelings of love, resentment, and jealousy all simultaneously play out. Consequently, the couple’s future becomes more divisive than ever, for better or for worse. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Sylvie and Laurent Still Harbor Some Feelings For One Another
The non-committal and open nature of Sylvie and Laurent’s relationship isn’t something new to the couple’s dynamic. Nonetheless, given their recent attempt at romantic reconciliation, their extramarital affairs take on a different meaning. This is evident in the way Sylvie treats her relationship with Giancarlo Petri as a simple fling while avoiding her husband back in Paris. Similarly, the latter shows his own concern over the matter by flying out to Rome for a heated confrontation. Ultimately, this results in friction between Giancarlo and the marketing head that leads to the end of their affair. On the other hand, Laurent returns to Paris with the intention of continuing his own flings now that he has realized his wife has no interest in rekindling their relationship.
Consequently, once Sylvie returns to the French city, she’s faced with the reality of Laurent’s active love life. Unsurprisingly, she’s bothered by the entire affair, even if she tries to hide it. What starts as small boundaries regarding personal property and space soon turns into a confrontation where she basically tells her husband to find a new place for himself. It becomes clear that the nature of their complex relationship is hitting Sylvie hard. She’s incapable of letting Laurent back into her life, while simultaneously feeling jealous of his other partners. Eventually, once the latter moves out, some of this tension resolves, and Sylvie even finds happiness in a no-strings-attached affair with a younger man named Beau. Nonetheless, that relationship crashes and burns sooner rather than later. In the end, an innocent lunch meeting between Sylvie and Laurent turns into something more as the duo inevitably falls back into bed together.
Laurent’s Unwise Business Practices and Lies Finally Push Sylvie to Demand a Divorce
Sylvie and Laurent’s reconciliation proves to be extremely short-lived. After they spend the night together, the businesswoman gets a call from her mother, Héloise, for an urgent meeting. Over lunch, she finds out that her husband has been dodging her mother’s calls while creditors continue harassing her regarding his yacht club, Laurent G a Paris. On top of being behind on payments, he also seems to have taken out a two-million-euro loan on the building, saddling Héloise to bear the brunt of his own business failings. All the while, he continues to lie to Sylvie’s face about how his business is booming well despite the fact that any discrepancies would be a direct hit to her own finances as well. Therefore, it doesn’t take long for her to confront Laurent about the entire debacle.
Sylvie is understandably angered by his dishonesty and deceit about something that has the potential to undo her own achievements. For the same reason, she finally decided to cut ties with the businessman for good. However, instead of a simple separation, she asks for a legal divorce to sever all ties with him, even the legal ones. So far, regardless of the state of their interpersonal relationship, Sylvie had held onto their marriage, likely as a symbol of her hope for a reconciliation between them. In fact, the first time they get back together in season 3 is a direct result of Laurent’s offer to divorce her to make her life easier, which is an alternative she didn’t seem to want to consider. However, now that his indiscretions have likely saddled her mother and herself with a monumental bill, she knows there’s no salvaging their relationship. Ultimately, although Sylvie and Laurent’s romance has always been tumultuous and prone to unexpected changes, she seems to be serious about her decision to divorce him this time around.
Read More: Do Mindy and Alfie End Up Together in Emily in Paris? Does She Get Back with Nico?
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