Anne is in Cannes with her husband Michael, a prominent movie producer. As the festival ends she learns that the vacation she and her husband were supposed to go on in Paris will be slightly delayed as they need togo toBudapest first. They plan to fly to Paris, but the pilot suggests Anne not fly due to an ear infection. Michael's producing partner Jacques offers to drive Anne to Paris himself. What is supposed to be a short car ride quickly devolves into a pleasant leisurely trip as Jacques, a French foodie, can't resist taking any opportunity he can to stop every hour or so to sample new food. He is also openly flirtatious with Anne but she begins to question his intentions when he repeatedly uses her credit card to foot the bill for the gourmet meals they are sampling. They visit a church where Anne grieves the baby she lost, and tells Jacques she wears her locket necklace in his honor. They share a romantic dinner together where Jacques admires Anne's photography, and asks why she doesn't share it with her husband. Later, on the road, Jacques confides that only he knows his brother's death was a suicide, and he carries that burden so his nephew doesn't have to know. They finally reach the place where Anne is staying and almost kiss, but the elevator doors close in on them. Anne sees Jacques has driven away, but he returns to kiss her passionately and ask her to a rendez-vous with him later in San Francisco. Days later, she receives a package from Jacques with chocolate roses and the money she had lent him on the trip. It includes a note that reminds her of the restaurant they will be meeting at, and she smiles at the camera suggestively.
In February 2015, it was announced Eleanor Coppola would direct the film from a screenplay she had written, with Diane Lane, Yvan Attal and Nicolas Cage joining the cast of the film, with Fred Roos producing under their American Zoetrope banner. In September 2015, it was announced Arnaud Viard and Alec Baldwin had joined the cast of the film, replacing Attal and Cage, respectively, with Lifetime joining as a co-producer.
On review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 47% based on 111 reviews, with an average rating of 5.39/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Paris Can Waits likable stars are ill-served by a film that lacks interesting ideas or characters and has little to offer beyond striking travelogue visuals." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 48 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".