Making people believe in his death by attributing his identity to Rosen, he takes Inspector Farges hostage, who came to the morgue to identify the body, and thus manages to go back to N'Jala, sheltered at the Château de Ferrières.

As Beaumont prepares to leave the scene in the helicopter bringing N'Jala's prostitute, the minister, urged by Colonel Martin, finally gives the order to "stop" him.

Jean-Paul Belmondo initially planned to work on Barracuda, directed by Yves Boisset, a film partly inspired by the Françoise Claustre hostage affair in Chad from 1974 to 1977.

[8] Alexandre Mnouchkine, Belmondo's producer, was not interested in Barracuda and suggested adapting Death of a Thin-Skinned Animal by British author Patrick Alexander, published in 1978 in the Série noire collection.

[8][9] Audiard was reportedly more focused on writing Garde à vue, leading to the involvement of Francis Veber as a script doctor to refine the screenplay.

[9] The story and political context of Le Professionnel were inspired by France's complex diplomatic relations with its former African colonies during the Françafrique era under Jacques Foccart.

[8] Georges Lautner noted logistical challenges, including the need to shoot the opening scene with a telephoto lens due to issues with the set.

[8] The climactic scenes were filmed at the Château de Maintenon and the Résidence Salmson Le Point du Jour in Boulogne-Billancourt, accompanied by Ennio Morricone’s score.

[8] Other cast members include Jean Desailly, Élisabeth Margoni, Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, and Belmondo's longtime collaborators Michel Beaune and Pierre Vernier.