As long last, Emily is in Paris! Emily Gilmore, that is!

Fans of the Palladino-verse know that Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino love casting familiar faces and fan-favorite alum in their series, and their new Prime Video show Étoile is full of them — from Marvelous Mrs. Maisel men Luke Kirby and Gideon Glick to Gilmore Girls stars Yanic Truesdale, Dankin Matthews, and more.

For those wondering, the special guest star who’s become a Sherman-Palladino staple over the years also made her triumphant return. We’re talking about the great Kelly Bishop, of course!

In the Palladino’s world, Bishop is best known in the for her iconic role as Emily Gilmore on Gilmore Girls, but she also starred in Palladino’s 2012 ballet dramedy Bunheads and appeared on the 2017 hit series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Sherman-Palladino’s deep love for Bishop — plus the 81-year-old actor’s personal history with ballet (she won a Tony Award for her role in A Chorus Line!) — made her role as Jack McMillan’s (Kirby) mother Clara McMillan a no-brainer for the creator.

“Well, we had to, because Kelly’s been in every single one of our shows. So if she wasn’t in this, we would have broken our streak and then the gods would damn us,” Sherman-Palladino told Decider over Zoom. “It was great. And her being a dancer is part of the reason that Kelly has always felt so comfortable in our world, because that rhythmic speaking, and the quickness of the patter, and the physicality of moving around — that’s all dancers. So that was right in Kelly’s wheelhouse from day one. And the fact that we found out later she’d never been to Paris. It was the first time. We dragged her to Paris. We got Emily in Paris, the real Emily in Paris! So that was kind of wonderful and special.”

While fellow Gilmore Girls alum Yanic Truesdale doesn’t get screen time with Bishop on Étoile, he made sure he and his dear friend had a perfect Parisian reunion — their own Friday night dinner, if you will.

“I really made a point of us having a moment and taking her out and showing her the Paris that I love. I picked a place that I knew she would just love. And we showed up at that Michelin restaurant I think at 6:30 p.m. and we left past midnight. It was just like a magical night,” Truesdale told Decider. “She eats like a bird, and I took [her for] the seven course dinner and she said, ‘Yanic, I’m never gonna —’ and I said, ‘I don’t care. Even if you have half a bite of each meal, I just want you to taste everything.’ And [she] ended up eating much more than she thought she would, and it was just a magical night. She’s so great.”

Kirby also took time to pile on praise for Bishop, and Decider having her around “was uplifting,” though that’s not a word he’d use to describe his on-screen mom. In Étoile, Bishop plays a character who has a familiar wit, enjoys Klonopin and alcohol, and possess a palpable passion for dance. She often shares the screen with Patrick Page, who plays Jack’s Uncle John Fish. And at 81 she never misses a beat, keeping up with dense, speedy Palladino dialogue like she did in her Gilmore days, and exhibiting delightful comedic timing. She warmly shares her love of ballet with children, tears up a dance floor, and even screams, “WHAT THE FUCK?!” which felt as satisfying as hearing her say “little baby chicken bitch” to Harrison Ford on Shrinking in 2024.

“Kelly is really warm. And her shared history with this art, that helps solidify what we’re doing for sure. She’s the only person I’ve seen riff on a Sherman-Paladino set. Boy, she riffed. Man, it was 15 minutes of her and we were all just mesmerized,” Kirby explained. She’s a legend. Her beauty and her talent. She’s just amazing.”

Étoile is now streaming on Prime Video.