Warning: This article contains detailed spoilers for the finale of Lupin Season 4 on Netflix. Do not continue reading if you have not watched at least the first seven episodes.
The fourth season of Lupin has become a global phenomenon on Netflix, ranking in the Top 10 in 62 countries according to FlixPatrol and reaching number 1 in 40 territories, including France. The eight episodes of this new installment see Assane (Omar Sy) face his most ambitious heist to date, while dealing with the daughter he didn't know he had, Adèle Kapoor (Laïka Blanc-Francard), and the relationship between his best friend Ben (Antoine Gouy) and Claire (Ludivine Sagnier).
The final episode, directed by Hugo Gélin, holds the most shocking revelations of the entire series and closes the season with a twist that leaves Assane's future completely up in the air.
What happens in the Lupin Season 4 finale
The episode begins with Guillaume de Charmerace (Loïc Corbery) returning to his mansion, convinced that it is only a matter of time before the police arrest Assane, with the complicity of the corrupt Commissioner Korvin. His fellow Guardians, known by the codenames Sapphire and Ruby, pressure him to get rid of Assane within 24 hours or they will activate the so-called Varenne procedure.
Raoul (Théo Christine) reveals to Claire and Assane how he ended up at the museum on that fateful night: he didn't believe Assane could complete the heist, so he snuck in to spy on them. Upon being discovered by Belkacem, he panicked and pushed her from the balcony. Belkacem (Shirine Boutella) and Guedira (Soufiane Guerrab) go to Claire's apartment to arrest Raoul, but find it empty. Guedira discovers a clue left by Assane; at the meeting point, Assane tries to convince him to leave his son out of it, warning him that he is working to unmask Korvin and that, once achieved, he will negotiate to avoid Raoul's arrest.
The Varenne procedure and the heist on the treasure
Assane knows the Guardians' plans in advance and designs a strategy to trigger the Varenne procedure itself, the only way to neutralize the power of this organization. Varenne is the name of a security company specialized in moving the assets of the world's largest fortunes to a safe location in case of an emergency.
Assane's plan consists of causing the water level of the Seine to rise so that the water floods the location of the treasure. To achieve this, together with Ben, he closes one dam and opens another at different points in Paris, posing as agents of the Brigade Fluviale.
When the news confirms the flooding of several areas of the city, including subway stations, De Charmerace activates the transfer of the treasure: a large truck emerges from a secret passage under his headquarters, escorted by the police, with Commissioner Korvin himself on board to hunt down Assane.
The chase through Paris
After losing the motorcycle Ben had left him, Assane resorts to a traffic officer's horse to locate the convoy. Near the Arc de Triomphe, he manages to stop it and diverts the police through the center of Paris, causing chaos while the song Aventure C'est L'Aventure by Johnny Hallyday, the soundtrack of a 1972 French classic, plays in the background. The chase ends in front of the Pantheon, where Assane evades a final police checkpoint and manages to escape.
As the convoy leaves Paris, an officer discovers the real Korvin locked in the trunk of a car. Upon breaking into the truck, she discovers that the person posing as Korvin was actually Juliette Pellegrini. The vehicle's signal is then blocked by a drone piloted by Adèle, who had intercepted the real commissioner before he boarded the truck. Assane's team takes the treasure, leaving De Charmerace begging the Guardians for a new opportunity, which they reject, taking control of the situation.
Raoul’s betrayal
When Adèle and Raoul prepare to meet the rest, a group of masked men kidnaps them at Assane's headquarters. Assane then receives a call from Adèle's phone: it is Hubert Pellegrini, who has returned to France and is holding Adèle and Raoul captive. He summons him to the place where Arsène 1st took his first flight. Guedira remembers that in the novel Arsène The First, by Arsène Lupin, the protagonist steals a plane to rescue a kidnapped woman, which takes off from Saint-Cloud Park.
There, Assane tries to exchange the treasure for the lives of Adèle and Raoul. But as he approaches, he discovers that Adèle has a bomb strapped to her back and that Raoul, far from being a victim, has joined Hubert's side. Raoul reproaches Assane for not having seen what was right in front of his nose: it was he who, after spying on Assane, Adèle, and Claire during the activation of the royal crown jewels, secretly called Hubert Pellegrini in prison, gave him money obtained from his dealings with a local gang, and freed him, becoming his accomplice to recover the treasure.
The ending: Assane wounded
Raoul accuses Assane of never having been able to choose between his real identity and his alter ego Lupin, between Claire and Juliette, or now, between Adèle and himself. He hands him the detonator and forces him to choose: Adèle or Raoul. The bomb's countdown reaches zero, but the detonator does not activate. Raoul tells him that if he really knew him, he would know that he would never be capable of doing something like that, although he acknowledges that, finally, Assane has made a choice.
When Belkacem and Guedira arrive at the scene, Raoul and Hubert Pellegrini try to flee by helicopter. Assane gets in the line of fire when Belkacem shoots; the bullet misses Raoul but hits Assane. The season ends with Assane bleeding from his chest, surrounded by Claire, Juliette, Ben, and Adèle, while Raoul and Hubert Pellegrini manage to escape, hinting that Hubert will become his new mentor.
Will there be a Lupin Season 5 on Netflix?
The outcome leaves an open ending that recalls other occasions when Assane has faked his own death within the series. However, this time he appears seriously wounded and without room to prepare a last-minute trick, although in the Lupin universe, anything is possible.
As revealed by the media outlet Télé Loisirs during a writers' panel at the Netflix Book Festival, screenwriter Florent Meyer confirmed that the team was already working on a fifth season.
The plot leaves several threads open for a possible continuation: Assane's relationship with Raoul, now estranged after his betrayal, despite having previously accepted the relationship between Ben and Claire; the pending arrest of Commissioner Korvin, of whom Guedira possesses recorded evidence of his corruption; and the situation of Adèle, whose existence as the daughter of Assane and Juliette has come to light, along with the fact that she lived in London with an adoptive mother after having committed robberies linked to very powerful people. Beyond the confrontation with Hubert Pellegrini, these elements could have weight in a future season, although Netflix has not yet officially confirmed its renewal.
If confirmed, Lupin would join the small group of French fiction series that manage to continue beyond several seasons, along with The Cage and Blood Coast.
Frequently asked questions about Lupin Season 4
Who kills or wounds Assane at the end of Lupin Season 4?
Assane is wounded by a shot from Commissioner Belkacem, which was aimed at Raoul while he was escaping with Hubert Pellegrini in a helicopter. Assane stepped into the bullet's trajectory to protect his son.
What is the Varenne procedure in Lupin?
The Varenne procedure is the emergency protocol of a security company in charge of moving the assets of the world's most powerful fortunes to a safe location. Assane causes a flood in Paris to force its activation so he can steal the treasure guarded by the Guardians.
Does Raoul betray Assane in Lupin Season 4?
Yes. It is revealed that Raoul secretly called Hubert Pellegrini while he was in prison, freed him in exchange for money, and became his accomplice to recover the treasure, betraying his father Assane in the process.
Did Netflix confirm Lupin Season 5?
Netflix has not officially announced the renewal, but screenwriter Florent Meyer confirmed during a Netflix Book Festival event that the team was already working on a fifth season.
What role does Hubert Pellegrini play in the Lupin Season 4 finale?
Hubert Pellegrini, freed from prison thanks to Raoul, kidnaps Adèle and Raoul to force Assane to hand over the stolen treasure. At the end of the episode, he escapes with Raoul, hinting that he will become his mentor.
