[5] The show stars Omar Sy in the role of Assane Diop, a man who is inspired by the adventures of master thief Arsène Lupin, a character created by Maurice Leblanc in the early 1900s.

[6] The first part, consisting of five episodes, is subtitled Dans l'ombre d'Arsène ("in the shadow of Arsène"), referring to the primary character's inspiration.

The story follows professional thief Assane Diop, the only son of an immigrant from Senegal who had come to France to seek a better life for himself and his child.

[15] On 19 July 2018, Netflix ordered a new series, to be produced by Gaumont Film Company, about the character Arsène Lupin, portrayed by Omar Sy.

In a 2018 interview, Sy revealed that "Arsene Lupin, who is an iconic and charismatic character, will take on a new life in this modern adaptation, unique in its genre".

However, upon being brought in as the series' showrunner and main writer, George Kay proposed that Sy should instead play a newly created character: Assane Diop, the son of a Senegalese chauffeur, who decides to style himself after the gentleman thief upon discovering Maurice Leblanc's books as a teenager in the 1990s.

"[26] In an interview with the French publication 20 Minutes, Ludivine Sagnier voiced her appreciation for the fact that although Claire continues to care deeply about Assane, she is able to remain true to herself and her desires.

It takes someone who knows Lupin to recognize he's here at all, and then to start exploring that as an idea felt quite fun because you can back-reference stuff, you can lay a load of breadcrumbs that relate to the books and bring those back in again.

[39] On 20 April 2023, Netflix announced that part 3 would premiere on the platform on 5 October of that year and that it would consist of seven episodes, with Ludovic Bernard, Daniel Grou, and Xavier Gens directing.

[40][4] The series' music is composed by Mathieu Lamboley, who also appears briefly in the finale of part 2 as the orchestra conductor at the Pellegrinis' concert.

[52] Lupin is one of the most successful Netflix series in a language other than English, with all three parts achieving placements on the streamer's international top ten.

The site's critical consensus reads: "Omar Sy effortlessly hits every mark in Lupin, an engrossing espionage thriller that lives up to its source material and then some.

"[57] Rolling Stone's Alan Sepinwall praised Sy's performance, writing that "it all works because [he] is so magnetic and charming that questioning plot logic feels wildly besides the point.

"[58] Karen Han of Slate wrote that Lupin "doesn't waste a single minute, packing each and every moment full of suspense".

The site's critical consensus reads: "Smart, sexy, and stylish, Lupin's highly bingeable second season is perfect summer viewing".

[61] The show's third part received similarly positive reviews, although some critics felt that the new set of episodes suffered due to lower stakes for Assane's character.

[67][68] The show also boosted tourism in Étretat, featured extensively in the fifth episode, to the point where the town's permanent residents struggled to deal with the influx of visitors.