It's not every day that a First Lady makes a cameo in a smash hit Netflix series, so viewers were stunned to see none other than Brigitte Macron, the wife of France's president, Emmanuel Macron, crop up as herself in season four of Emily in Paris.
The second part of the popular show's fourth season dropped on the streamer last week, with Brigitte appearing in episode seven when Emily Cooper (Lily Collins) stops her for a selfie as they dine at the same restaurant.
'Emily, it's you!' the First Lady enthuses, before informing her friends that she follows the marketing executive and social media phenomenon on Instagram. When Emily voices her adoration of France, Brigitte responds, 'And my country loves you, Emily.'
After posing for a selfie with Brigitte and her friend Genevieve, Emily shares the photo on Instagram and includes the hashtags, 'FirstLadiesWhoLunch' and 'makeiticonic' - which is a slogan from Emmanuel Macron's drive to attract foreign investors to France.
According to Lily, the inspiration for a Brigitte Macron cameo was born after she and Emily in Paris creator Darren Star met the First Lady at the Élysée Palace in December 2022.
'She is a big fan of the show and took the mention of her in season one with great humour,' Lily said in an interview, referring to a past scene when Brigitte shares Emily's Instagram post expressing disappointment that the French word for vagina, le vagin, is masculine.
Lily continued, 'This scene in season four is a wink, and shooting with her was both an honour and a real joy.' Darren, meanwhile, said that Brigitte has 'great talent'.
Netflix confirmed that Mrs Macron wore her own clothes for the cameo and wasn't given any 'particular instructions' by the show's bosses.
'Jaw dropped when I saw they got Brigitte Macron to do a cameo on Emily in Paris,' wrote one fan. A second tweeted, 'Brigitte Macron being in Emily in Paris is so random but kinda iconic lol'. A third wrote, 'Emily in Paris is so unserious, haha. A cameo from Brigitte Macron, the First Lady?'
Brigitte - who at 71 is 25 years [her husband's senior]{href='https://x.com/Colaqershi/status/1835384567953572140' } - has been married to Emmanuel, 46, since 2007.
Millie Payne is a News and Entertainment Writer for Grazia. She has specialised in showbiz interviews, features, articles and roundups for over three years and loves combining her love for writing, talking and all things popular culture.