Warning! Spoilers for Netflix’s Lupin follow.
Netflix’s mystery thriller Lupin has just dropped its highly anticipated third instalment, following Omar Sy as gentleman thief Assane Diop in his latest string of impossible robberies against Paris’s wealthiest.
Over the course of three parts and 17 episodes, the George Kay and François Uzan-created series has given viewers more twists and turns than your standard Ocean’s Eleven movie – and the latest season is no different.
If you’re keen to catch up on Assane’s antics of thievery, disguises, espionage and revenge, here’s everything you need to know about the Netflix show you should be watching.
The show, which kicked off in 2021, follows Assane Diop – a French orphan who is inspired by the adventures of gentleman thief Arsène Lupin, as told in a book left to the protagonist by his father.
Fun fact: Lupin is actually a real-world character who was created by French author Maurice LeBlanc in 1905.
In the opening season, viewers find out that Assane’s father was framed for the theft of a diamond necklace by the wealthy business tycoon Hubert Pellegrini.
Assane’s father hangs himself in prison, orphaning his son – but 25 years later, Assane sets his sights on revenge against Pellegrini by any means necessary, and with help from the fictional Lupin.
The synopsis of the third season teased a conflict between Assane’s family life and consequences of his criminal endeavours - and the appearance of the “ghosts of the past.”
It reads: “Now in hiding, Assane must learn to live far from his wife and son. With the suffering they endure because of him, Assane can’t stand it any longer and decides to return to Paris to make them a crazy proposal: leave France and start a new life elsewhere.
“But the ghosts of the past are never far away, and an unexpected return will turn his plans upside down.”
The poster for Lupin season 3Omar Sy stars as Assane Diop and is supported by a large cast. His wife Claire Laurent – who has the sole custody of the pair’s son – is played by Ludivine Sagnier.
Hubert Pellegrini, the show’s main antagonist, is played by Hervé Pierre, and his daughter and wife are portrayed by Clotilde Hesme and Nicole Garcia.
Soufiane Guerrab stars as Youssef Guédira – a detective who uses his knowledge of the Arsène Lupin books to track and guess Assane’s plots.
Following the release of Lupin’s third season on 5 October, the internet has been set alight by a reveal-come-cliffhanger in its final moments – and this is your last spoiler warning before we explain it.
Reading on? Okay, don’t say we didn’t warn you.
At the end of the season, Assane decides to turn himself into the police, having decided that putting his family under this much stress is no longer worth it.
The final episode begins to wrap up with the thief in his cell, which has been fitted with the entire collection of LeBlanc’s Lupin stories.
The twist, however, comes with the reveal that Assane’s next door neighbour – as in, the cell literally next to his – is none other than big bad Hubert Pellegrini himself, who was arrested in season two’s finale.
If you’ve forgotten who that is, Hubert is the man who framed Assane’s father for the theft of the Queen’s necklace, way back before the events of season one.
The future of Netflix's Lupin is currently uncertainNetflix has not (so far) renewed Lupin for a fourth season.
However, given the show’s popularity and tantalising ending, the streaming giant would surely be missing out should they not choose to renew.
Speaking to RadioTimes.com previously, showrunner George Kay hinted at a long future for the gentleman thief:
“These shows are designed on purpose to run for a long time. And it’s never about the stunts.
“The one tiny worry of running out of amazing places in Paris to steal from, that’s not the issue. It’s just making sure that you have those core central relationships to keep exploring.”
According to stats at the time, the first season of the show was watched by 76 million households on its initial release; it became the (then) most-watched non-English series on Netflix.
54 million households watched the second season of the show – but it is still one of the most successful series in a language other than English.
Lupin seasons one to three are streaming on Netflix now.
