Netflix’s new French heist drama Lupin is set to become the second most-watched season of an original series ever on the platform. Lupin is projected to be watched by 70 million households in the first four weeks of launching, according to Variety. This puts Lupin closely behind The Witcher, which was released in 2019, with 76 million viewers.
Lupin is followed in the rankings by another international heist drama La Casa de Papel (or Money Heist in America), whose fourth season received 65 million viewers. To put that into perspective, the next most popular international series is Barbarians, a German show, with only 37 million viewers. (Netflix counts viewers as any household that watches at least two minutes of a series).
Netflix created Lupin as part of its strategy to win over French citizens with local content, so it was only designed to be successful in France. However, Netflix has about 9 million subscribers in France, which means at least 87% of Lupin’s viewers were from other countries. Netflix admitted in a letter to shareholders that the successes of Lupin, and Money Heist alike, was better than the company anticipated.
Lupin tells the story of Assane Diop (Omar Sy), the son of a Senegalese immigrant, who is inspired by the Arsène Lupin novels to take up a life as a gentleman thief to avenge his father’s death. In the first episode, Assane hatches a plan to steal a necklace that belonged to Marie Antionette from the Louvre. The grandiose plan unfolds from there in a series of suspenseful twists and turns.
Lupin followed in the footsteps of Money Heist, a Spanish series about a group of Robin Hood-like thieves who plan to rob the Royal Mint of Spain. While Money Heist plays on anti-capitalist themes, Lupin takes a different approach, making the shows different enough to bring in new viewers, yet equally loved by audiences everywhere.
There’s no explanation as to why heist dramas are at the forefront of Netflix’s top shows. But one thing is for certain, after these soaring numbers, Netflix is sure to make more seasons of Money Heist and Lupin. And, if we're lucky, we might even see some new heist players come along.