Why did Lila marry Stefano in My Brilliant Friend? Explained

Why did Lila marry Stefano in My Brilliant Friend (Image via YouTube/HBO)
Why did Lila marry Stefano in My Brilliant Friend (Image via YouTube/HBO)

My Brilliant Friend is one of the most popular international series on HBO. Based on Elena Ferrante’s novel series, the Italian and Neapolitan-language show tells the story of two best friends, Lenù and Lila, going through various ups and downs.

The show takes place over decades, and the two friends’ love and marital lives are integral to the story. One of the significant plot points comes when Lila marries Stefano Carracci, who is much older than her.

Stefano, the son of the local mobster Don Achille Carracci, is a goon himself who threatens people and even bullies Lila before their marriage. This makes one wonder why Lila chose to marry Stefano despite his troubling behavior in My Brilliant Friend.


Lila gets married to Stefano in My Brilliant Friend to escape her wedding with Marcello Solara

Stefano Carracci in My Brilliant Friend (Image via HBO)
Stefano Carracci in My Brilliant Friend (Image via HBO)

In My Brilliant Friend, Lila decides to marry Stefano Carracci not because she loves him but to escape a difficult situation. When she turns 16, her family starts pressuring her to marry Marcello Solara, a wealthy man from a powerful but corrupt family.

Lila can’t stand Marcello, but her family wants to make a connection with the Solaras because they want to expand their shoe business. To avoid marrying Marcello, Lila chooses Stefano, who seems like a somewhat better option.

After his father’s death, Stefano takes over the family business as a mobster and uses his wealth to convince Lila to marry him. He even buys the shoes Lila and her brother made, making it seem like he supports her dreams.

Stefano promises Lila that he will not involve the Solaras in their life or sell the shoes she designed. Lila believes Stefano will help her escape the control of the Solaras. She hopes they can build a better future together, free from the corrupt power that the Solaras have over the neighborhood.

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However, Lila’s hopes are shattered when she realizes Stefano has been lying. He invites the Solaras to their wedding and even sells them the shoes she worked so hard to design, breaking his promise. Lila feels betrayed and stuck, learning that Stefano is connected to the Solara family.

Ultimately, Stefano cares more about money and his ties to the Solaras than Lila’s happiness. Lila’s wedding, which should have been a moment of hope, turns into a moment of disappointment. On the day of the ceremony, Lila starts to see that she is losing control of her life.

When Marcello shows up at the wedding wearing the shoes Lila designed, it feels like a punch in the gut to her. Her hard work, which was supposed to give her independence, is now used by the people she tried to avoid.

Lila Cerullo in My Brilliant Friend (Image via YouTube/HBO)
Lila Cerullo in My Brilliant Friend (Image via YouTube/HBO)

Her life gets worse after the wedding. Stefano turns out to be an abusive husband, constantly hitting her and treating her poorly. To make things worse, Stefano was not as rich as the Solara family, so Lila still had to depend on them for help.

This made her feel trapped, as she had to rely on the people she hated the most. On the other hand, Marcello had been obsessed with her and even punched a wall when she rejected him, but he claimed he would not hurt her. Lila didn’t love Marcello or Stefano, but her marriage to Stefano made her life harder.

Looking back, Marcello might seem like a slightly better choice than Stefano in My Brilliant Friend, but either way, Lila's life would have been full of violence and control. She hated the Solaras too much ever to be happy with them, and marrying into that family would have put her in just as much danger as staying with Stefano.


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Edited by Sarah Nazamuddin Harniswala