'I met David Beckham and his incredible gesture showed his true colours'

Netflix sensation Lucien Laviscount has revealed how Sir David Beckham demonstrated his "true colours" during their first encounter. The 33-year-old actor has achieved global recognition through his role in Netflix's Emily in Paris.

The Burnley native confessed he was originally set to appear only briefly in the popular series, but has since spent four seasons playing British banker Alfie. Prior to the show, he had featured in beloved British programmes including Grange Hill, Coronation Street and Waterloo Road. Lucien has disclosed that it was former England captain David who helped launch his acting career. The two crossed paths during a Marks and Spencer photoshoot when Lucien was merely 10 years old.

He had already set his heart on acting after being influenced by his mother's bedtime tales and witnessing his younger brother's response to The Lion King. "His whole face just lit up, he was in tears going through this whole f***ing emotional rollercoaster," Lucien told The Times.

However, it was a kind act from Sir David that truly set Lucien on his journey to fame. After Lucien shared his ambition to become an actor with the former Manchester United star, Sir David arranged for an assistant to contact a drama school in Manchester.

The institution subsequently telephoned Lucien's mother to extend an invitation to attend a class. Despite only going twice, the school informed him about an audition opportunity for a BBC drama called Clocking Off.

Lucien's acting career took off after landing a role on the show, leading to appearances in series like Scream Queens and Episodes, as well as films such as Your Christmas or Mine? and even made an appearance on Celebrity Big Brother.

The actor is currently starring in the fifth season of Netflix's Emily in Paris, which returned last week. The series follows the life of Emily Cooper, a young American marketing executive portrayed by Lily Collins, who relocates from the USA to France.

Lucien's character, Alfie, serves as one of Emily's romantic interests as she navigates her new European lifestyle.

"When I first came onto the show I was only supposed to do two episodes, I hadn't even been to Paris before," Lucien reveals. He expressed his immense gratitude for the show and admitted it's "insane" to still be part of the cast in its fifth season.

Since its debut in 2020, Emily in Paris has amassed a massive cult following. According to The Times, the first series alone was streamed 58 million times in its opening week.

Despite Lucien's initial fears that it might be a "one hit wonder", the fourth series garnered 20 million streams in its first week.

Lucien himself has seen his popularity skyrocket, now boasting 2.6 million followers on Instagram, something he admits he's "still wrapping my head around".

In a conversation with Gentleman's Journal, Lucien shared that he ran into David years later and even had the opportunity to thank the footballer for aiding him on his path to stardom.

He expressed: "I bumped into him a while back and said to him, 'thank you, you changed my life.' It's a great example of how the simple things you do can change someone's trajectory and how your actions can have results on someone else in a certain way.

"That small gift of kindness, and I'm sure he doesn't remember, changed not just my life, but my friends and family's lives."