'Lupin' to face Sherlock Holmes? Show creator talks of 'discussions'
French series Lupin is creating shockwaves across the global Netflix fandom, as it has reached the company's US popularity charts in January, while topping its counterparts across countries like Brazil, Argentina, Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, Vietnam and the Philippines. This has prompted the streamer to tease the release of its sequel coming "this summer!" And, eventually, Lupin might brush against Sherlock Holmes too!
The series is based on Arsène Lupin, Gentleman Burglar, an anthology series by Maurice Leblanc. Of his several short stories on the witty burglar, one story focuses on the brainy battle between Lupin and sleuth Holmes in the story Sherlock Holmes Arrives Too Late. Consequently, Sherlock Holmes's creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle cited copyright laws, forcing Leblanc to twist the name to Herlock Sholmes.
Lupin creator George Kay said, "It's not a very satisfying pun...but I do like the attitude behind it. Speaking really honestly, there have been discussions." There is even a 1990 educational movie with the French title Herlock Sholmes arrive trop tard... in which we see the characters engage in a not-so-friendly manner when it comes to deciding who is more intelligent.
Lupin essays the adventures of thief Assane Diop, played by actor-comedian Omar Sy, whose father was accused of crimes he never committed. To avenge ills meted out to his father, Diop grows inspired by Leblanc's character of Arsène Lupin and becomes a thief. Both the first and second parts are of five episodes each, with the former mostly set in Paris.
The character of Sherlock Holmes has been portrayed on radio, TV, theater and in films by endless actors starting form Clive Brook, Roger Moore, Michael Caine, down to recent portrayals by Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr., and Henry Cavill. So, the stakes are really high, for which Kay approves of this showdown. "You want to take it to a really meta level," he quipped.
