Omar Sy: from Untouchables and X-Men to Netflix hit 'Lupin'

Netflix recently released the second season of 'Lupin,' a jewel of a series in which Omar Sy plays the thief Assane Diop. His story is inspired by Maurice Leblanc's literary character 'Arsène Lupin'.

Get to know the brilliant French actor in this gallery. You've probably seen him more often than you thought!

The son of Senegalese workers, Omar Sy grew up in a family of eight siblings. His father arrived in France in 1962 and the family joined him a few years later. As a child, Omar got to know filmmaker Jamel Debbouze.

Jamel invited Omar to participate in the pilot of a radio show, and it was an instant success. “I wouldn't have known about this profession, with its possibility of making the greatest number of people laugh, if it hadn't been for Jamel,” Omar Sy told Le Monde.

A short time later, Omar Sy met comedian Fred Testot, with whom he would make an unforgettable duo on French TV.

In 2000, Omar and Fred landed small roles in Charles Nemes' film 'La Tour Montparnasse Infernale'. In 2002 and subsequent years, Omar Sy appeared in 'Le Raid' and a few other minor productions.

In 2006, Omar Sy gave life to an important character in the film 'Nos Jours Heureux' (Our Happy Days). He played the camp leader in a movie that became a summer box office hit.

While Omar's professional career took off, his personal life was also doing great. In 2007, the actor married his high school sweetheart Hélène. They are still together and have five children.

Between 2008 and 2011, Omar Sy played in films such as '2 Alone in Paris', 'Safari' and 'So Close.' In the latter, he plays a young doctor confronted by racism.

His big success came in 2011 with the dramatic comedy 'Untouchables'. Omar Sy plays the assistant of a rich white man in Paris (played by François Cluzet). He teaches his grumpy employer about street style and happiness.

For his role in 'Untouchables', Omar Sy won the Best Actor Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival (a tie with François Cluzet) and also the Cesar in the same category.

In 2012, Omar Sy co-starred in David Charhon's film 'De l'autre coté du périph' ('On the other side of the tracks') in which he plays a policeman.

You may not have remembered, but Omar Sy was Bishop in the movie 'X-Men: Days of Future Past.' The superhero had the power to absorb energy and turn it into fire.

In 2015, Omar Sy gathered steam as a movie star with his role in the super production 'Jurassic World', the fourth part of the 'Jurassic Park' saga. His co-stars (in this image) were Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

In the following year, he starred in another cinema blockbuster: 'Inferno', the third film in Robert Langdon's series after 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels and Demons'.

Having played next to Chris Pratt in 'Jurassic World' and Tom Hanks in 'Inferno,' Omar Sy starred in 'The Call of the Wild' alongside Harrison Ford in 2020. He also had a voice role in the animation movie 'Soul.'

All about Harrison Ford and his films over the years

A new peak in Omar Sy's acting career is 'Lupin'. Netflix statistics reveal that the series ranks first in ten countries, including the United States. 'Lupin' was watched by 76 million homes worldwide in the first 28 days after its release.

The stories of inventive criminal Assane Diop have hooked viewers all over the world. They are based on the books by Maurice LeBlanc. Other reasons for its success are the star cast of the series, featuring the best French actors, and the way in which it explores beautiful places in history.

Regarding the character, Omar Sy told France Inter: "In the books about 'Arsène Lupin', Maurice Leblanc shows his fanciful vision of an ideal Frenchman: a bit anarchist, light, great seducer, a classy thief… Assane Diop is a bit of all this."

While 'Lupin' is still drawing millions of viewers, Netflix allegedly works on a new project with Omar Sy. It might be a sequel to 'Untouchables.' What we do know for sure is that the actor appears in another 'Jurassic Park' movie next year: 'Jurassic World: Dominion'.