I used to hate TV. Thought it was a great waste of time to watch so many ad breaks. And to have to chose from a few programs. And to have to stay awake for it to start. Bref, didn’t like it much.
And then came streaming. You can even enjoy French series on Netflix..
Here are 6 great French series on Netflix.
Author : Marie Drouvin
Salut! Je suis Marie and I'm on a mission to make learning French simple. You can find me on Youtube, or here, on this blog. And if you want to know more about how to learn French, take a look at my book.
And if you are a fan of French movies, I’ve compiled a list of great ones. You can get this list when you join the French Club by entering your email here.
Lupin, 2021
I LOVED Lupin. It’s a great retelling of a classic of French literature: Arsène Lupin, the gentleman burglar. Which is the early 20th century equivalent to Robin Hood. Netflix did a great job good producing this series. Omar Sy is perfect in this role.
Now, it’s not a series for any learner. There is a lot of different speech levels used, and quite a few expressions. I wouldn’t advise students that aren’t at least intermediates to try to follow the series without English subtitles.
But if you do, you’ll learn plenty of ways to talk about money!
Part 2 is already in the making. And it already is the most popular French series on Netflix EVER.
La Bazar de la Charité (Bonfire of Destiny), 2019
I really liked this series too.
And I’m generally not a fan of TF1 series. TF1 is a French tv channel. And they produce series and movies as well.
1897, Paris. A fire starts at a charity event. And this fire is going to destroy more than the lives of the 126 women who died with it. It’s going to unveil some pretty dark truths. And completely change the lives of 3 survivors.
The dialogues are actually easier than I thought, so I would recommend this one for intermediate, even early ones.
La Révolution, 2020
At first, I was really excited about this French Netflix series. I’m a history buff, and I thought this was going to be a great way for my students to learn a bit more about what makes French people… French.
If you are a history buff yourself, read this article about historical events that shaped France.
But La Révolution is not a simple historical series. It’s a fantastic series. The story is based upon this: what if the French revolution had a totally different cause?
And it seems fitting this series was released in 2020, because it’s going to be about…
Well you’ll see.
Again here, this is not a series to watch without English subtitles if you are a beginner or an early intermediate. Good one for advanced learners though!
The Hookup Plan (Plan Coeur), 2019
Almost thirty and lonely. Until a perfect guy comes along. Seems like the classic beginning of a romantic comedy right? Except this one is not quite so classic, and it’s not pretty.
If you are a beginner, start here. Romantic comedies are perfect for you because the vocabulary is simple, you can sort of understand what’s happening even if you don’t understand everything.
Watch this instead of Emily in Paris if you want to get some REAL VIEW of Paris.
It’s also a good series if you liked French romantic comedies.
Marseille, 2016
You’re into political drama? Then, this is the perfect French Netflix series for you.
It stars a giant of modern French cinema: Gérard Depardieu (who also plays Cyrano, my favorite French movie of all time).
Here’s the synopsis.
Robert Taro is about to retire from a busy and successful political career. The transition to his protege begins. But it doesn’t go as planned.
Lucas Barres, who is supposed to succeed Robert Taro, is ambitious, and hungry. His vision for the city of Marseille is drastically different from the one of Taro.
Family Business, 2019
I haven’t taken the time to watch this series yet.
But my family did.
And they loooooooved it. I could hear them laugh like crazy baboons the other night, and I’m surprised my students didn’t run away because of it.
Here’s what it is about.
Joseph is a failed entrepreneur. But that’s about to change. Because he gets a tip that cannabis is soon going to be legalized in France. And to start this kind of very successful business, he needs space. So it is a good thing that his parents run a butcher shop…
The whole family goes into the weed business.
And if you are a fan of French movies, I’ve compiled a list of great ones. You can get this list when you join the French Club by entering your email here.
