Summary

• Money Heist (La Casa de Papel) is a popular Netflix series about a group of robbers with fake names.
• The Professor is the mastermind behind the heists and has a tragic backstory that motivates his actions.
• The show features a diverse cast of characters, each with their own unique backstories and roles in the heists.

Netflix's high-stakes crime thriller series Money Heist (known as La Casa de Papel in its native Spain) follows a group of robbers who all use fake Money Heist character names. Throughout Money Heist's five seasons and two ambitious heists, the masked thieves' real names and backstories are revealed one by one, from the hotheaded Tokyo to the criminal mastermind, the Professor. Created by Álex Pina, Money Heist originally ran on Antena 3 in Spain, where it started with a strong viewership that steadily declined throughout season 1. After being added to Netflix's library, the series experienced a massive surge in popularity, attracting a worldwide audience of fans.

Money Heist was renewed for two more seasons (split into three parts) by Netflix, with a bigger budget and a new target for the gang: the Bank of Spain in Madrid. After several of Money Heist's city-named robbers were killed off during season 1, the Professor brought on new talent in Money Heist's subsequent seasons, including Berlin's close friend Palermo, outside operator Marseille, and expert welder Bogotá. Throughout Money Heist's five parts, plenty of characters with rich backstories are introduced and developed. Here's every robber in the Money Heist cast, including their real names and each known backstory.

Sergio Marquina

a.k.a. The Professor

The outwardly nerdy and socially awkward Professor (Álvaro Morte) is the last person anyone would suspect of masterminding a heist. Sergio also went by the pseudonym Salva Martín in Money Heist season 1, when he was trying to get close to the lead heist negotiator, Raquel Murillo. Afflicted with illness, Sergio spent most of his childhood in a hospital bed. His mother died of a degenerative disease called Helmer's myopathy, and his father was killed during an attempted bank robbery. This backstory is where Money Heist's Professor developed his motive.

Sergio then spent the rest of his life refining a plan for the perfect heist that his father had dreamed up: laying siege to the Royal Mint and printing his own money, so that technically he would be stealing from no one and harming no one. After the success of this initial heist, the Professor goes on to plan the higher-stakes Bank of Spain job in Money Heist seasons 2 and 3, in which he also comes out on top in the end.

Silene Oliveira

a.k.a Tokyo

An incurable thrill seeker, Tokyo (Úrsula Corberó) suffered the tragic loss of the love of her life when he was shot dead during their robbery of an armored truck. Unfortunately, her story doesn't end any less tragically, as Money Heist season 5 kills Toyko in a shocking moment in episode 5 when she sacrifices herself to save Denver and Manila. Little is known about Tokyo's childhood, but her mother took part in a sting operation in the hopes that she would be brought in unscathed by the police.

The Professor intervened, telling Tokyo that the police planned to shoot her on sight. Tokyo's mother then died during the preparation for the Royal Mint heist. Hotheaded and daring, Tokyo has a tendency to be a ticking time bomb during robberies, which is also what makes her one of the most compelling Money Heist characters.

Ágata Jiménez

a.k.a. Nairobi

The shock of Nairobi's Money Heist season 4 death is almost as great as Tokyo's. A former drug dealer and expert forger, Nairobi' (Alba Flores) backstory is focused on how she lost custody of her son, Axel, when he was three years old. After Nairobi left him alone for a few minutes to go and collect some pills, Axel went onto the balcony to call for her. The police were called and Nairobi's stash was discovered, leading to her being sent to prison and Axel being put into the foster system.

In Money Heist season 1, Nairobi plans to get rich and then take Axel back, but she later accepts that he's better off in his new home and sets her sights on becoming a mother for a second time so that she can do things right. Sadly, Nairobi's second chance is cut short when she is fatally shot in the head in Money Heist season 4.

Aníbal Cortés

a.k.a. Rio

One of the great love stories in Money Heist is Rio and Tokyo's. The youngest member of the team, Rio (Miguel Herrán) is still a teenager during the Royal Mint heist. He's a skilled hacker who gets started in the world of crime by committing cyberattacks and is recruited by the Professor for his talent with computers. Rio comes from a loving family, and his parents believe he is simply playing video games in his room, unaware of what he is doing.

After ing the gang, Rio falls in love with Tokyo and the two begin a relationship - even though it breaks the Professor's first rule. Throughout Money Heist's five seasons, Rio and Tokyo continue their love story until the latter is killed, before which she and Rio share a tearful goodbye. Rio is one of the few original gang to survive until the successful completion of the Bank of Spain heist.

Andrés de Fonollosa

a.k.a. Berlin

A suave jewel thief, it's revealed before Berlin's death in Money Heist season 1 part 2 that the character, played by Pedro Alonso, is the Professor's older brother. Like their mother, he suffers from Helmer's myopathy. He uses drugs to control the pain and tremors, but the disease left him with merely three years left to live. Instead of despairing at his fate, Berlin chooses to live a life with nothing to lose, chasing thrills and riches. He was married five times, with his fifth wife being a thief called Tatiana (Diana Gómez). Berlin is one of a few of the Money Heist characters who never make it to the later seasons, although Berlin got a spinoff series.

Agustín Ramos

a.k.a. Moscow

The original Money Heist job, the Royal Mint of Spain, wouldn't have succeeded without Moscow. A veteran robber, Moscow (Paco Tous), spends much of his life in and out of prison. His main talent is for digging through walls, so the Professor recruits him to be in charge of digging the tunnel out of the Royal Mint. Moscow's main priority in life is his son, Denver, and he gets both of them involved in the heist after Denver loses a valuable stash of pills, putting him at risk of being maimed or worse by his drug suppliers.

In Money Heist season 2, it's revealed that, after repeated attempts to get Denver's mother off drugs by putting her in rehab clinics, Moscow takes her to the spot where she usually buys heroin and abandons her there. Moscow marks an earlier Money Heist character death, as he's shot outside the Royal Mint in season 1 part 2.

Daniel Ramos

a.k.a. Denver

Though he has Money Heist's most annoying laugh, Denver (Jaime Lorente) is also a largely likable character. He had a rough start in life, born to a drug-addicted mother and a criminal father. Denver spent most of his childhood getting into fights with anyone who tried to mess with him, and as he entered adulthood he soon fell into the same criminal lifestyle as his parents. He was arrested on numerous occasions for fighting and drug charges before he got in over his head by losing the stash of pills.

Denver was brought into the Royal Mint heist at Moscow's request, as an exception to the Professor's rule against personal attachments. In an even further violation of the rule, Denver ends up falling in love with a season 1 hostage, Mónica Gaztambide, who eventually becomes a part of the crew for the latter half of season 1's heist and the duration of seasons 2 and 3.

Mirko Dragic

a.k.a. Helsinki

Helsinki survives Money Heist season 5 part 2's ending. Though he's often affectionately called a "teddy bear," Helsinki (Darko Perić) has a dark backstory that's little spoken about. Born in Serbia, he was a soldier in the Yugoslav Wars and has been described as a war criminal. Following his time in the army, Helsinki turned to a life of crime along with other of his family and was recruited by the Professor for his combat skills. Helsinki is gay and has a relationship with Palermo during the preparation for the Bank of Spain heist, but his closest bond is his friendship with Nairobi.

Radko Dragic

a.k.a. Oslo

Helsinki's cousin, Oslo (Roberto Garcia Ruiz), was born in Belgrade, Serbia, and fought alongside his cousin in the wars. Afterward, the two of them continued together in a life of crime alongside several other accomplices and relatives. Oslo primarily appears early in Money Heist's timeline. Oslo and Helsinki are very close, but Oslo's knowledge of Spanish appears to be limited, meaning that Helsinki usually ends up speaking for both of them. Oslo is Money Heist's first crew member death, coming at the end of season 1 part 1.

Mónica Gaztambide

a.k.a. Stockholm

Named after Stockholm Syndrome, which some characters speculated that she may be suffering from, Stockholm (Esther Acebo) is the secretary and secret lover of the Royal Mint's director, Arturo Román (Enrique Arce), and becomes pregnant. During the first heist, she attempts to smuggle a phone for Arturo and is caught. Berlin orders Denver to kill her, but he won't, and instead shoots her in the leg. Stockholm eventually becomes a collaborator in La Casa de Papel's Royal Mint heist and escapes with the rest of the gang. Afterward, she and Denver get married and raise a son together. Along with the Professor and Rio, Stockholm and Denver survive Money Heist season 5.