
Netflix's Lupin is the streaming service's first French-language series to find a mainstream audience in the US. It's set to be bigger than both The Crown and Bridgerton in Australia.
The series (the first season dropped on Netflix in January) follows the story of Assane Diop (Omar Sy) a ridiculously good looking tall man who wears great coats and does a sneaky sneak.
When Assane was young, his father worked as a chaffer and butler for a wealthy white family. When the family patriarch accused Assane's father of stealing a diamond necklace that was once associated with Marie Antionette, he was thrown in jail. He later signed a confession and then ended his own life.
Watch the trailer for Netflix's Lupin. Post continues below.
Assane was placed in care and spent his days becoming increasingly obsessed with a book his father gave him and the fictional character of Arsene Lupin, a "gentleman thief" and a master of disguise, first created by Maurice Leblanc in 1905.
At the start of the series Assane, now an adult, plots to steal the necklace which has since been found and is about to go up for auction at the Louvre, to avenge his father's death.
He soon learns there's a lot more to the story than he originally thought.
So is Netflix's Lupin based on a true story? Well no, and... yes. Let's break it down.
Is Lupin based on a true story?
No, Lupin is not based on a true story but the series takes its inspiration from the fictional character of Arsene Lupin.
The character of Arsene Lupin was first created in 1905 by French writer Maurice Leblanc, for a series of short stories that were published in the French magazine, Je sais tout. After the success of the short stories, Leblanc went on to write over 20 books about Arsene Lupin.
It's believed Leblanc may have taken inspiration for creating the character of Lupin from the trial of Marius Jacob. Marius Jacob was a French anarchist who banded together a gang of fellow "anarchists" who stole from the rich and donated a percentage of the profits to the anarchist cause.