# Osmosis (2019 TV series)
**Osmosis** is a French science-fiction television series created by Audrey Fouché and released on Netflix on 29 March 2019. Set in a near-future Paris, it follows a brother and sister who launch a dating application that matches users with their soulmates by mining their brain data through a micro-robot implant, and the beta test that goes wrong.[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/80189898) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/fr/title/tt7043380/) It was the first French science-fiction series distributed on Netflix.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie_gen_cserie%3D22114.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | 8 episodes of about 52 minutes, French language, one season[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/80189898) |
| Release | 29 March 2019 on Netflix[2](https://www.imdb.com/fr/title/tt7043380/) |
| Creator | Audrey Fouché, who had written for *Les Revenants* and *Borgia*[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/80189898) • [4](https://www.dna.fr/actualite/2017/05/11/apres-marseille-netflix-lance-une-nouvelle-serie-francaise) |
| Premise | A dating app matches singles with their soulmates by mining their brain data, but decoding true love comes at a price[5](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/441686/) |
| Main cast | Agathe Bonitzer as Esther Vanhove, Hugo Becker as Paul Vanhove, Gaël Kamilindi as Gabriel[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7043380/fullcredits/) |
| Origin | Adaptation of a 2015 web series created by Louis, William, and Gabriel Chiche for Arte Creative[3](https://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie_gen_cserie%3D22114.html) |
| Production | Capa Drama; filmed in Paris from early June to 31 October 2018[7](https://scriptoclap.fr/oeuvres/osmosis/) |
| Reception | IMDb 5.8/10 from about 3,700 votes; Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer 100% from 5 reviews, Popcornmeter 65%[2](https://www.imdb.com/fr/title/tt7043380/) • [8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/osmosis) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
In near-future Paris, the Osmosis application guarantees users a perfect match with 100 percent accuracy by digging deep into their brain data, turning the idea of an absolute soulmate into reality. The price is access to the innermost recesses of the mind and the best-kept secrets of the heart.[9](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/29914/osmosis) Siblings Esther and Paul Vanhove recruit a group of young people to test the implant, and the beta test yields unwelcome surprises.[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/80189898)
The eight episodes trace the test from recruitment to launch day. In "The Test", investors drop a bombshell just as the siblings recruit their testers; later episodes follow the testers as they meet their supposed soulmates, hallucinations that take a dark turn, a suspected mole inside the company, and Esther's search for the truth about Joséphine's disappearance, culminating in "Rebirth", in which Esther goes to extremes to revive Martin while Paul and the company prepare for launch.[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/80189898)
## Production
Netflix announced the series in May 2017 as a follow-up to its first French original, the political drama *[Marseille](https://www.edgepedia.org/marseille-2016-tv-series)*, moving from [Marseille](https://www.edgepedia.org/marseille) to Paris and from political drama to science fiction.[4](https://www.dna.fr/actualite/2017/05/11/apres-marseille-netflix-lance-une-nouvelle-serie-francaise) The concept originated as a web series of ten six-minute episodes created in 2015 by Louis, William, and Gabriel Chiche for Arte Creative, produced by Telfrance and Arte; Netflix bought the concept and developed it into eight episodes of about 52 minutes.[7](https://scriptoclap.fr/oeuvres/osmosis/) • [10](https://laloidesseries.lalibre.be/2018/04/26/tournage-en-juin-pour-osmosis-la-nouvelle-serie-francaise-de-netflix/) Fouché changed the original duo of two brothers into a brother and sister, according to producer Aude Albano of Capa Drama.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie_gen_cserie%3D22114.html)
Filming took place in Paris from early June to 31 October 2018, and the production received 334,000 euros in support from the [Île-de-France](https://www.edgepedia.org/ile-de-france) region in September 2018.[7](https://scriptoclap.fr/oeuvres/osmosis/) In September 2018, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings announced a new Paris office from the set of the series, describing a push into French-language drama that included *The Eddy*, *Arsène Lupin*, and *Plan Coeur* alongside *Osmosis*.[11](https://www.screendaily.com/news/netflix-reveals-details-of-new-french-language-series-paris-office/5133067.article)
Directing was shared among Pierre Aknine (four episodes), Mona Achache (two), and Julius Berg (one). Writing credits went to Fouché as creator, with José Caltagirone, Thomas Finkielkraut, Sylvie Chanteux, Olivier Fox, and the Chiche brothers among the writers.[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7043380/fullcredits/) • [7](https://scriptoclap.fr/oeuvres/osmosis/) Fouché and Netflix deliberately cast new faces rather than established actors, revealing performers such as Yuming Hey, Manoel Dupont, Luna Silva, and Stéphane Pitti, alongside the YouTuber Jimmy Labeeu and comedian Waly Dia.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie_gen_cserie%3D22114.html)
## Place in French science fiction and Netflix's French slate
*Osmosis* was the first French science-fiction series distributed on Netflix, and a 2022 study in *French Screen Studies* identifies it as only the second French television series commissioned by Netflix.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie_gen_cserie%3D22114.html) • [12](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/26438941.2022.2110747) The French National Center for Cinema (CNC) places it in a wave of French genre series of the 2010s and early 2020s, alongside *Le Visiteur du futur*, *Dead Landes*, and *OVNI(s)*, describing it as a romance that pushes dating sites to the extreme by imagining an application that guarantees the soulmate.[13](https://www.cnc.fr/series-tv/actualites/dead-landes---osmosis--quand-la-sciencefiction-inspire-les-series-francaises_1640397)
The series was selected in the French Competition at the Série Mania festival in Lille in 2019.[7](https://scriptoclap.fr/oeuvres/osmosis/)
## Critical interpretation
Because of its near-future technology and its dark turn, *Osmosis* was frequently compared to *Black Mirror*. A 2022 article in *French Screen Studies* argues that the parallel is unhelpful: the series lacks the underlying technophobia of the British anthology and is largely, though not entirely, optimistic about the implications of artificial intelligence and technological advances for humanity. The author characterizes the series by its ambivalence, blending dystopian and utopian elements and subverting Anglophone science-fiction conventions, while sharing with *Black Mirror* a critique of certain excesses of [late capitalism](https://www.edgepedia.org/late-capitalism).[12](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/26438941.2022.2110747)
## Reception
Audience and critical measures diverge. On IMDb the series holds a 5.8/10 rating from about 3,700 votes.[2](https://www.imdb.com/fr/title/tt7043380/) On Rotten Tomatoes the small critical sample gives a 100 percent Tomatometer from 5 reviews, while the audience Popcornmeter stands at 65 percent from more than 50 ratings.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/osmosis) The series ran for a single season; TVmaze and [JustWatch](https://www.edgepedia.org/justwatch) list it as ended, and it remains available on Netflix.[9](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/29914/osmosis) • [14](https://www.justwatch.com/uk/tv-series/osmosis)
## References
1. [Osmosis, Netflix official page](https://www.netflix.com/title/80189898)
2. [Osmosis (Série télévisée 2019), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/fr/title/tt7043380/)
3. [Osmosis, Série TV 2019, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/series/ficheserie_gen_cserie%3D22114.html)
4. [Après Marseille, Netflix lance une nouvelle série française, DNA (11 May 2017)](https://www.dna.fr/actualite/2017/05/11/apres-marseille-netflix-lance-une-nouvelle-serie-francaise)
5. [Osmosis, Cineuropa](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/441686/)
6. [Osmosis (2019) Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7043380/fullcredits/)
7. [Osmosis, Scriptoclap](https://scriptoclap.fr/oeuvres/osmosis/)
8. [Osmosis, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/osmosis)
9. [Osmosis, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/29914/osmosis)
10. [Tournage en juin pour Osmosis, La Loi des Séries (26 April 2018)](https://laloidesseries.lalibre.be/2018/04/26/tournage-en-juin-pour-osmosis-la-nouvelle-serie-francaise-de-netflix/)
11. [Netflix reveals details of new French-language series, Paris office, Screen Daily (28 September 2018)](https://www.screendaily.com/news/netflix-reveals-details-of-new-french-language-series-paris-office/5133067.article)
12. ['On n'est pas dans Black Mirror': ambivalent optimism in Osmosis, French Screen Studies Vol 24, No 1](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/26438941.2022.2110747)
13. ['Dead Landes', 'Osmosis'... Quand la science-fiction inspire les séries françaises, CNC (4 April 2022)](https://www.cnc.fr/series-tv/actualites/dead-landes---osmosis--quand-la-sciencefiction-inspire-les-series-francaises_1640397)
14. [Osmosis, watch tv series streaming online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/uk/tv-series/osmosis)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Genre and subject-scripted series › Science fiction television series › Near-future tech and thriller series*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license