Ashley Park Denied That She Had Chemistry With Her Now-Boyfriend Paul Forman to Lily Collins
''Emily in Paris'' stars Ashley Park and Paul Forman made their romance Instagram official in January 2024.
They say Paris is the City of Love, but Ashley Park initially didn''t want to find love with her Emily in Paris co-star-turned-boyfriend Paul Forman.
Ahead of the upcoming fourth season of Emily in Paris, the 33-year-old actress dished to Cosmopolitan in an interview published on Aug. 6 about her on-and-off-screen beau.
"In the beginning, we were just friends, because I was at a point where I was like, ''I will never date an actor again,''" she told the outlet. "And one of the first things he said to me was, ''I''ve never dated an actor.'' And I was like, ''Amazing.''"
In the Netflix series, Park stars as Mindy Chen, an aspiring singer and best friend of Lily Collins'' fashionable character, Emily Cooper. Forman joined the cast during its third season where he portrays Nicolas de Leon, a wealthy businessman who becomes Chen''s love interest.
"I mean, let''s face it, he''s eye candy," Park continued. "So I was also like, ''Oh my god, definitely not. I am past that. I would never fall for someone who looks that impeccable.'' So we were just friends. Very platonically, we would hang out. Then I was invited by the International Medical Corps to go and volunteer with Ukrainian refugees in Poland. It was going to be a whole week in Poland and I didn''t want to do it alone, so I thought, You know who should come with me, because literally we are just good friends, is Paul."
She added, "I come from the theater! You want to bond with your costars, and I was like, ''He''s my new scene partner.'' So I invited him. Fast-forward, we''re filming one of our last scenes together, and he said, ''I am getting really attached to you.''"
But Park didn''t fully believe Forman''s attachment to her.
"I felt so all-knowing and above it," Park told the outlet. "I was like, ''Oh, you poor man, let me explain. This is a show. You''re just excited about the whole thing."
While Park may have tried to convince herself and Forman that there wasn''t any chemistry between them, she couldn''t fool Collins.
"Lily noticed the chemistry. She was like, ''Ashley, what is going on?'' And I replied, ''Nothing. I told you I wasn''t dating actors.'' It was the first time I was really standing up for myself," Park said. "I told her, ''Lily, your disbelief in my growth is sad, because he''s the exact type of guy that I said I wasn''t going to go for. I told you, and so I really want you, as my friend, to believe me."
Now, Collins teases Park about the whole thing.
"But back then, she just asked, ''So why did you guys kiss during the rehearsal?'' I was like, ''It''s because we''ve been doing scenes all week.'' And she said, ''Well, you guys seemed really excited,''" Park recalled. "Then that night, we got together. We went out, and I thought I was going to be third-wheeling on a date with him, and it turned out it was just us. And I was like, Oh my god, I’ve lied to my best friend. I really do like this guy. What do I do?"
It was their trip to Poland that really opened Park''s eyes -- and heart.
"Watching him play chess with these children who did not have a home and acting like this father figure to them because their fathers were at war, watching him be so present, it was amazing," she explained. "So I had to do a little loss-of-dignity tour. I had to be like, ''Lily, everyone, we are so in love.'' That was about two years ago."
The couple first sparked romance rumors in October 2023 when they were spotted holding hands at The Hollywood Reporter''s Beauty Dinner at Holloway House in West Hollywood, California.
A few months later, the pair went Instagram official in January. In Park''s post, she praised Forman for supporting her when her tonsillitis spiraled into "critical" septic shock.
"Grateful most of all to @peforman for being unconditionally by my side through all this," Park captioned her post in part. "You calmed my fears and held me through ambulances, three foreign hospitals, a week in the ICU, scary ERs, countless scans and tests and injections, excruciating pain, and so much confusion all while we were alone on the other side of the world far from those we know. I love you Paul. More than I can ever say."
At the time, Forman left a comment on her post, simply writing, "My love ❤️."
After the medical scare, Forman shared a sweet selfie of the two posing together and one of him holding Park''s hand in a hospital bed.
"By your side, no matter what ❤️ @ashleyparklady," he captioned his Instagram post.
But Park explained to Cosmopolitan that she and Forman originally wanted their hard launch to be in the Maldives.
"It''d been a year and a half. It’s funny now: The Maldives trip was going to be our hard launch," she told the outlet. "Literally, if you ask any of my friends, if you ask my assistant, I was like, ''We''re hard-launching.'' And then I got sepsis. We joke that if our next vacation is literally just taking out the trash, it will be amazing by comparison."
She added of Forman, "One of the reasons I wanted to be friends with him, and eventually fell in love with him, is that he''s so generous and kind as a coworker and a friend. I''ve never been with a straight white male who has been more generous or better to work with on a set. Ever, ever, ever."
Since going public with their relationship, the couple has frequently been out and about together. In February, the two attended London Fashion Week before attending Paris Fashion Week in March.
"First public date with @jw_anderson ♥️ Congratulations @jonathan.anderson on an incredible show," Forman captioned an Instagram carousel at the time.
In May, the couple documented their time in Rome, which the new season of Emily in Paris was filmed at.
In June, the couple went to Vogue World: Paris together.
"date night for the 📚 #vogueworldparis," Park captioned a joint Instagram post with Forman capturing the stylish date night.
Part 1 of season 4 of Emily in Paris will drop on Netflix on Aug. 15. Then, less than a month later, the second half of the season will debut on Sept. 12.
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