Why Claire From Netflix's Lupin Looks So Familiar

Netflix fans are clearly excited for the newly released crime-comedy series, Lupin. While some Harry Potter aficionados may be disappointed it's not a show about their favorite werewolf-professor, that hasn't stopped streamers from making Netflix history; according to Deadline, following Lupin's January 8 release, it became the platform's first French series to crack the United States' top 10 list for popularity. And it's easy to see why, with such an intriguing premise: 25 years after his father died, having been wrongfully accused of a crime, Assane Diop pulls inspiration from the classic French gentleman thief Arsène Lupin to enact his revenge.

While American audiences will no-doubt recognize series lead Omar Sy as Barry Sembène from Jurassic World (he also played Bishop in X-Men: Days of Future Past), they may have a tougher time placing the face of Claire, portrayed by actress Ludivine Sagnier. Here's why you may recognize her.

Viewers wondering why Claire from Lupin looks so familiar may recognize her as Esther Aubry from the HBO miniseries, The Young Pope, which tells the story of the Catholic Church's first American pope. Actress Ludivine Sagnier portrayed the wife of a member of the Pontiff's Swiss Guard, a wife whom Cardinal Angelo Voiello (Silvio Orlando) tries to propel into the bed of Lenny Belardo, a.k.a. Pope Pius XIII (Jude Law) (it's HBO, what'd you expect?). Sagnier reprised the role for The New Pope, a continuation of the series which sees John Malkovich elected Pope John Paul III and Esther go from being the former wife of a Swiss Guard to entering the position of missionary — and yes, the sexual pun was fully intended. 

As some viewers may realize, that wasn't Sagnier's first time working on a project featuring Malkovich in a religious role.

Well before she took up the role of Claire on Lupin, Ludivine Sagnier appeared in the early 2000s historical miniseries, Napoleon, about the eponymous French military commander and eventual emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte. While the show detailed the title character's successes and failures on the battlefield, it also shone light on his personal life, including his divorce from his first wife, Joséphine. Sagnier portrayed Hortense de Beauharnais, Joséphine's daughter from a previous marriage and Napoleon's stepdaughter. Mind you, the historical Hortense also married Napoleon's brother, Louis Napoleon, making her the sister-in-law of her stepfather, which, though confusing, still isn't as bad as sorting out Danaerys and Jon Snow's relationship on Game of Thrones.

Airing on the U.S. on the A&E network, Napoleon received nine Emmy nominations, including one for John Malkovich's portrayal of crafty French diplomat and clergyman Charles Talleyrand. But the series also courted controversy, with Italian politician Umberto Bossi angrily contending that it glamorized Bonaparte, according to the BBC.

Lupin actress Ludivine Sagnier also appeared in one of the many adaptation's of author J.M. Barrie's tale of the boy who refused to become a mature adult, Peter Pan, in a 2003 film of the same name. Sagnier became the second actor to take on the mantle of everyone's favorite fairy, Tinker Bell, in a live-action film, joining Julia Roberts, who played the role in Hook. Jason Isaacs took on the traditional dual roles of George Darling and Captain Hook and Jeremy Sumpter portrayed the title character, winning the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor and the Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actor. 

Peter Pan is certified fresh on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with a score of 77% and the consensus calling it "solid if far from definitive" but also "visually impressive, psychologically complex and faithful to its original source."