CNN
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When Netflix’s hit series ‘Emily in Paris’ revealed at the end of season four that the main character was heading to Rome, it surprised many viewers. Now French President Emmanuel Macron has joined the conversation, saying the country will “fight hard” to prevent the show from moving to Italy’s capital.

“We will ask them to stay in Paris, ‘Emily in Paris’” in Rome makes no sense,” he told Variety in an interview published Wednesday.

The show centers on twenty-year-old American marketing manager Emily Cooper, played by Lily Collins, who moves from Chicago to Paris for a job and enjoys la belle vie in the French capital. It’s often among Netflix’s most-watched shows, and when the streaming giant renewed it for a fifth season, creator Darren Star said Emily will now “be present in Rome.”

Following the French president’s comments, Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri posted a tongue-in-cheek response to X, writing: “Dear Emmanuel Macron, don’t worry: Emily is doing great in Rome. And you have no control over the heart: let’s let her choose.”

Gualtieri added in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter Roma: “Doesn’t President Macron have more pressing matters on his mind?”

Gualtieri said: “I would like to believe, at least I would like to hope, that Macron was joking because he should know that a production company like Netflix does not take orders from heads of state and does not make decisions based on political pressure. ”

Macron has long been associated with the show. His wife, Brigitte, made a cameo in season four when Emily saw her in a cafe and asked for a selfie. And in the show’s fictional universe, Brigitte shares one of Emily’s social media posts in season one, expressing shock that the French word for vagina – le vagin – is masculine.

“I was very proud and she was very happy to do it,” Macron said of his wife’s cameo. “It’s only a few minutes, but I think it was a very good moment for her. I think it is good for the image of France. ‘Emily in Paris’ is super positive in terms of attractiveness for the country. It is a very good initiative for my own company.”

Although the show has drawn criticism from some French viewers for drawing on Parisian clichés and avoiding issues like homelessness in the city, it has boosted tourism to the country’s capital, according to a survey conducted by France’s National Film Center which was carried out in January.

About a tenth of tourists decided to visit France after seeing a particular film or series and in 38% of those cases it was “Emily in Paris” that inspired a French holiday, the research found.

But despite his wife’s associations with the show and its impact on tourism, Macron has no plans to make his own guest appearance.

“I’m less attractive than Brigitte,” he told Variety.