Why Emily In Paris Is Perfect Ambient TV

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Emily in Paris is full to the brim with cheesy clichés, very thin plot lines and no long-lasting challenges that the characters need to face. 

When ambitious marketing exec Emily graced our screens and the streets of Paris in 2020, the show was met with a lot of criticism and contempt. Critics called it corny and flat, and Parisians were offended and cast it away as completely ridicule.

And yet, despite all this criticism, Emily in Paris has amassed hundreds of millions of viewers since its pandemic premiere, and just released its fourth season last week. In fact, in the very first year of its debut, the show was streamed in 58 million households, and in 2022, it was actually the streaming service’s most watched show. So, what drew all of these viewers in? 

If you’re familiar with the term ‘ambient TV’ then you’ll understand exactly why Emily in Paris is as successful as it is. If something is ambient, it can fade away into the background but still be enjoyable when you do choose to ‘tune in’. Emily in Paris is the perfect example of a great background show.

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Think about it, the show really isn’t that deep. You can watch it completely stress free. Emily encounters little bumps in the road, usually regarding her love life, slightly hostile work pals and trying to adjust to French culture, but she never faces any life-changing or distressing problems that a lot of other shows include. Nothing bad ever happens to her for long.

As well as that, you won’t miss anything huge if your eyes do happen to wander back to your phone screen, or when you remember you forgot to put on the wash. You can multitask around this show, and when you come back you’ll most probably be greeted with the same tracking shots of Emily jogging down the Seine or yapping away with Mindy in a cushy French restaurant.

Of course we all love a show that has us glued to the screen, one that we can’t stop thinking about days after we’ve finished watching. It can take a lot of brainpower to fully understand the complex plots and characters of other shows, and that’s what makes them popular. They keep us thinking and keep us talking.

However, you have to admit that the idea of sitting down in front of the TV and truly being able to just switch off and relax, knowing that your favourite character is not going to die, isn’t appealing. People appreciate TV that lets them simply look at pretty pictures, funny one-liners and lots of clichés. 

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Emily in Paris really just offers us an escape from the real world, which is exactly what a lot of people are looking for when they sit down to watch TV. The show is clearly set in modern times, but it doesn’t incorporate any real world issues or current affairs into its plot. There are no subtle reminders of what is going on around us, so we can turn that part of our brain off too.

Emily in Paris isn’t the first ‘ambient’ show, in fact Netflix is full of them. Cooking shows such as Chef’s Table offer lighthearted entertainment and mouth watering shots, without the stress. Similarly, home improvement shows like Instant Dream Home and Tidying Up With Marie Kondo can be interesting to watch, but also make perfect background noise while you’re getting those weekly chores done.

Sitcoms like Brooklyn 99 and Kim’s Convenience Store are funny and super enjoyable to watch, but because the episodes aren’t really linked to each other, you don’t have to stress about missing anything important. Ultimately, despite the snobby remarks about these types of shows being cheesy and meaningless, there will always be a place in our hearts for low-stakes, lighthearted (and super cliché) background TV. 

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