The real theft of the Louvre jewels: the promo that Belphégor would have “gone well without”

The new HBO Max series had the chance to film in the mysteries of the most beautiful museum in the world, just before it hit the headlines, following the spectacular burglary of the Apollo Gallery.

Reality sometimes surpasses fiction…

In Belphégor, the new event production from HBO Max (to be seen currently on the platform), there is talk of a theft at the Louvre. A priceless mask from Mesopotamia has disappeared and we will quickly understand why… In real life, it is the crown jewels of France which were stolen a few weeks ago, and we still do not know where they are. The most beautiful museum in the world is in the spotlight when the series arrives.

“It’s not the kind of promo we were hoping for,” admits co-creator Nils Antoine Sambuc, interviewed by Première. “We met lots of people there, employees, guards, and we obviously think of them. We empathize with them. It must have been a difficult moment.” His sidekick, Thomas Mansuy, adds: “These people have an emotional attachment to the works that is sincere. So we can imagine the trauma that this theft could have caused in them.”

He himself also admits to having been “shocked” by this robbery: “It had a bit of the same effect on me as the fire at Notre-Dame Cathedral. When we touch these icons, these emblematic monuments, it feels very funny. There is something a little sacred and we don’t understand how we can dare to break a window of the Louvre, to go and attack this monument. There is something sacrilegious.”

Of course, Belphegor has nothing to do with this theft and does not really question the security of the Louvre strictly speaking.

“The history of the series is very far from all that. And then there are quite a few fictions that have fun robbing the Louvre, whether it’s Lupine or Cat’s Eyes. And at no point do we say to ourselves that we’re going to give ideas to anyone when we do this kind of series…”

Especially since the production was lucky enough to be able to film inside the building. A shoot like no other, subject to a few obvious rules:

“They obviously had points of vigilance, because we are talking about a theft at the Louvre… So, for Belphégor, as for Lupine or Cat’s Eyes, we never show how it would be possible to rob the museum. They asked that the series show that France protects its works of art.”

Even more, the museum collaborated with the Belphégor team and accompanied them during these exceptional filmings: “It was very important to have conversations with the people who work there. To understand what their philosophy is, their point of view. On the trafficking of antiquities too, because it is a theme that we address in the series, a subject which deeply touches many researchers at the museum. They talk about it with real emotional involvement. The idea was to talk about the museum like that, its sense of Universality” insists Nils Antoine Sambuc. “I think they were very happy that we were filming there, and they were very involved in the production.”

Belphégor, in four episodes, can be seen on HBO Max before its unencrypted broadcast on M6 in 2026.