Cancel your weekend plans to binge one of Netflix’s best heist thrillers ever

It’s been a long time coming, but Assane Diop is finally back and up to no good.

Lupin returned to Netflix this week for its fourth part, three years on from the third, which ended with the expert thief banged up. 

We can only assume the show waited so long to come back so his prison sentence could play out in real time, because when we return, it’s four years on from when we last saw Assane. 

Now the gentleman thief, played by Omar Sy, is trying out the quiet life in Senegal – until he gets wind of a copycat back on his home turf. They are busy pulling off museum heists and going by Lupin too.

With his innocence now on the line, Assane has to return to Paris to catch the imposter in the act.

For those who are only just getting in on the heist jewel in Netflix’s crown, when we last saw the burglar, he had pulled off a series of improbable raids on the rich.

But by the end of that episode run, Assane decided he’d had his fill of giving the law the slip and finally turned himself in.

The season ended with Assane in his cell, surrounded by the complete works of Maurice Leblanc’s burglar stories. These real books tell the tales of suave Arsène Lupin, who Assane modelled himself on. 

Then it was revealed that his nemesis, Hubert Pellegrini, was the hidden mastermind behind a lot of the mysteries of the season and in the cell next door.

So a word of warning: do not take everything as it comes on this show. The twists pile up. 

This is the longest the show has been off our screens since season one of the action drama hit Netflix in January 2021, followed by season two later that same year. Season three was a much longer wait, arriving in late 2023.

The fourth instalment, which sees star Sy bumped up to co-showrunner behind the scenes, has so far been met with solid reviews, although not quite totted up enough for a Rotten Tomatoes score. 

The Guardian gave the season four stars and described it as ‘higher-budget, higher stakes and more cinematic’ with a premise that has become all the time more timely after the Louvre heist last year.

Another positive review from Screen Rant wrote: ‘If Lupin season 4 stays focused on the heart of its narrative, Assane’s final outing as the gentleman thief is sure to be a thrilling joyride with enough charm to spare.’

Collider also praised the season for maintaining the quality of narrative, production, and performances, adding that ‘the action looks even better so far’.

Lupin part 4 is available to stream on Netflix.