[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Étoile Season 1, Episode 8, “The Offer.”]
Étoile‘s first season leaves viewers with plenty to look forward to as the finale sets up various cliffhangers, none as compelling as the triangle dynamic between ballet execs Jack (Luke Kirby) and Geneviève (Charlotte Gainsbourg) as well as star dancer Cheyenne (Lou de Laâge).
While Jack and Geneviève’s stunt of swapping company members for a season does serve to revive interest in the art form, there are plenty of factors that lead to a fracturing of their relationship. By the end of the season, Jack has prematurely offered an Artistic Director position to Cheyenne after the current position holder, Nicholas (David Haig), falls ill to the point of almost dying.
When he does pull through, Jack has to rescind the offer, angering Cheyenne, but also putting her in a predicament where she’s fallen out with Geneviève for having entertained the idea of staying in New York to take on the gig. And while Cheyenne’s dancing is lauded, her vision as an artist was particularly on display through her tutelage of young dancer Susu (LaMay Zhang). “The relationship between Cheyenne and Susu is, I think, really beautiful, but Cheyenne is obsessed with art and with dance and ballet. So when she meets someone who is gifted and a hard worker,” de Laâge points out, “she’s interested in this kind of person.”
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We see their bond deepen as Cheyenne trains Susu and encourages her in her own way, and it makes her believe she could take on the leadership role Jack offered her. When Cheyenne returned to New York, it was unwillingly so, but once there, de Laâge says, “[Cheyenne] needs to find a purpose. She needs to find something she loves,” and in this case, it was that possible position and her bond with Susu.
Meanwhile, Geneviève feels betrayed by Jack’s decision without consulting her, but is she jealous that she wasn’t offered the gig? “She felt that she was in a great place with him, and it’s suddenly…. you’re a traitor,” Gainsbourg says, turning to Kirby.
“I think I’ve come out clean,” Kirby says with a smirk. But perhaps Jack’s offer to Cheyenne stemmed from something more? After all, when Jack suggested taking his and Geneviève’s situationship to the next level, she basically rejected him. Perhaps he didn’t even consider the idea of offering Geneviève the gig because of that.
“It’s a little complicated, I think,” Kirby says, while Gainsbourg doesn’t entirely agree. Either way, Kirby adds, “I think there are many ways of looking at this. And I think it’s certainly complicated… We’re dealing with forces of nature, we’re dealing with a shared history and affection for art… Hopefully, the time will just sort of smooth out these wrinkles,” Kirby suggests, acknowledging that there are more stories to tell in Season 2.
But we’re not so sure those wrinkles will be smoothed so easily, especially after that kiss between Jack and Cheyenne in the finale’s final moments. When it comes to the person who initiated the smooch, de Laâge admits, “It’s me, but he says yes.”
“No… I say don’t. Stop. Don’t stop…” Kirby jokes. See the trio’s full video interview, above, and let us know what you thought of those Season 1 cliffhangers in the comments section below.
Étoile, Season 1, Streaming now, Prime Video
