Fabienne Bériot was a character in the first part of Lupin. She was portrayed by Anne Benoît.
She was an investigative journalist whose exposé on the Pellegrini family led to her being sued for defamation by Hubert Pellegrini and getting blacklisted by her fellow journalists. Fabienne later helped Assane Diop accuse Hubert of selling arms to Malaysian terrorists; however, their plan to ruin him failed, and she was killed by Léonard Koné, one of Hubert's henchmen.
History[]
Fabienne began writing professionally in 1985, and spent her entire career at a magazine called The Objector, gaining acclaim for her work. Her specialties were articles exposing corrupt people and organizations, including politicians and pharmaceutical labs. She became infamous for her 1996 book Dirty Money: The Pellegrini System, which revealed the corruption and criminal activity that Hubert Pellegrini had engaged in. Fabienne faced immense backlash when Hubert's lawyers successfully sued her for defamation, which wound up ruining her career. After this Fabienne isolated herself from the world, living alone with only her dog, J'accuse, for company.
Throughout Lupin[]
Part 1[]
Fabienne first meets Assane in the fall of 2020, after he breaks into her home while she is out buying groceries. She does not appear to be particularly afraid of Assane, telling him that if he plans to steal anything, he will be disappointed. Assane tells Fabienne he has not come as a burglar, but rather a fan, and asks her to sign his copy of her book. She refuses, claiming that Fabienne Bériot "doesn't exist anymore." Assane tells Fabienne he needs her help taking down Hubert Pellegrini and reveals that the entrepreneur had framed his father for the theft of the Queen's Necklace, resulting in his imprisonment and subsequent suicide. However, Fabienne remains certain that Hubert cannot be stopped, and orders Assane to leave.
Assane asks Fabienne for help
Shortly after their initial meeting, Fabienne drives to Assane's house and tells him that she has changed her mind, pointing out that since Hubert ended her career and destroyed her reputation, she has nothing left to lose. Assane happily accepts her help and invites her into his house. He informs Fabienne that the necklace theft happened in 1995; Fabienne states that this makes sense, since Hubert's company was on the verge of collapsing that year. She tells Assane that there is a videotape in the archives of The Objector that will ruin Hubert.
Working together, Assane and Fabienne steal the tape from the headquarters of The Objector. Afterwards, Fabienne remarks that doing this was an enjoyable experience for her. The two watch the tape, which contains footage of Hubert selling weapons to a group of Malaysian terrorists who went on to use them to attack the French embassy in Kuala Lumpur, killing eleven people (of whom eight were French nationals). Assane sends a tweet under the pseudonym "@Salvator810" publicly accusing Hubert of responsibility for the act and threatening to release the video, which quickly stirs up a media firestorm.
Fabienne is present when Hubert gives a press conference about the tweet, and loudly asks him whether he feels that he bears responsibility for the Kuala Lumpur attack. Hubert becomes visibly enraged and refuses to answer. When she arrives back at her home, Fabienne tells Assane that she was followed by one of Hubert's men, but that she managed to lose his tail. She is somewhat disappointed by Assane's decision to present the contents of the tape on the lowbrow talk show The Other Edition, but attempts to go with him to the taping. Assane instructs her to remain at her house for her own safety; although disgruntled by this, Fabienne ultimately acquiesces. While Assane is applying his "Salvator" disguise, Fabienne tells him that he has brought her back to life.
Leonard threatens Fabienne
Fabienne is enraged when she sees that Hubert's associates have managed to doctor the tape before it can be played on air, removing any footage that proves his guilt; however, she writes a message to Assane in his copy of her book, assuring him that their fight has only just begun. Shortly afterward, she hears a knock at the door. Upon opening it, she finds out that Léonard Koné, the man who had previously attempted to follow her, has managed to track her down. Léonard forces his way into the house and pins Fabienne against a wall, informing her that he will kill her if she does not give up Assane's location. Defiantly, Fabienne retorts that "a good journalist never reveals her sources." Later, when Assane arrives at Fabienne's house, he finds her hanging from a noose, dead.
Fabienne's death was widely covered in the press, with several articles linking her with "Salvator." Despite her blacklisting, many of her former colleagues praised her work posthumously.
Personality and relationships[]
Fabienne outside her home
Fabienne was an intrepid and morally upstanding person who took her job very seriously, regarding popular news shows such as The Other Edition as fake journalism. Fabienne’s focus was on exposing corruption and corporate malpractice, and she always took the side of the underdog. Her idealism and desire to fight evil ultimately landed her in a sea of difficulties, most notably the defamation lawsuit which destroyed her career.
Having based much of her identity around her work as a journalist, Fabienne was crushed by her blacklisting. She became a recluse, and even claimed that “Fabienne Beriot” was no longer existent as a person. However, Fabienne regained her sense of self when she teamed up with Assane.
Fabienne, who had never been married, considered herself unattractive, and spent her last years with only her dog J’accuse for company. She maintained her hatred for Hubert Pellegrini, teaching J’accuse to bark whenever his surname was spoken. Her brief alliance with Assane was the only meaningful relationship she had during this time; it was strong enough that Fabienne chose to give up her life rather than reveal Assane’s location to Léonard. Assane was crushed by Fabienne’s death and ended up bringing J’accuse home with him.
Appearances[]
- Part One
Quotes[]
- "I have nothing anymore. Therefore, I have nothing to lose."
- —Fabienne on deciding to help Assane
- "A good journalist never reveals her sources."
- —Fabienne defies Leonard's threats
Trivia[]
- Fabienne was partly inspired by the character of Lee Israel in the film Can You Ever Forgive Me.[1]
- Although Fabienne's date of birth, as seen when Assane looks her up online, indicates that she was 57 in December 2020, the newspaper read by Claire on the train from Le Havre reports that she died at age 58.
- Her dog, J'accuse, is named after a French news article from 1898. An open letter to the then President of France, J'accuse was written in defense of Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish French artillery officer who was accused of allegedly leaking French war plans to the Prussians, resulting in his countrymen's defeat. Attacks against Dreyfus were mostly of an antisemitic nature.
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