Netflix’s newest miniseries, Dear Child, tells the terrifying and truly disturbing story of a woman who is hit by a car in a German forest, a mysterious little girl who accompanies her in the ambulance, and the years-long crime that unravels as detectives work parse through her baffling case.
The six-part German series, which is based on a book by the same name, introduces viewers to a cast of characters, including a woman named Lena, her two children, Hannah and Jonathan, and a man named Lars. After Lena is hit by a car, detectives start to ask a whole lot of questions about why she was driving in the woods the night of her crash, and the series culminates in a truly intense final episode.
While the series is full of lots of interesting characters and plot points, people are most interested in the mysterious Lars from Dear Child. And specifically, is he a based on real person? Here’s what you need to know about Lars and the series finale.
Who is Lars Rogner?
Lars Rogner is a character in Dear Child who is introduced as the owner of a local surveillance and security company, per Netflix. But all is not as it seems with Lars.
Viewers later find out that he has been keeping the woman, "Lena," and her kids under lock and key, overseeing their lives and forcing them to live in a windowless house. Lars keeps Lena, 12-year-old Hannah, and 8-year-old Jonathan isolated from the world, following a super strict, regimented schedule that he creates for them. For example, whenever Lars enters a room, his family has to line up and hold out their hands to prove they have nothing to hide.
Later, it is revealed that "Lena" is actually a woman named Jasmin, and she's not the kids' mother. Their real mother, Lena, died several years prior. But more on all that in a sec.
Is Lars based on a real person?
No. Lars is a fictional character from the bestselling book by Romy Hausmann, Dear Child (the original German title is Liebes Kind), per Netflix. This guy is not a real person.
Who is the kidnapper?
Lars is the kidnapper—he abducted this "Lena" (a.k.a. Jasmin) and several other women, too. He also abducted the original Lena.
What happens at the end of Dear Child?
Everything unravels at the end of the series. Viewers learn that the OG Lena Beck was a woman Lars kidnapped while pregnant with her first child, Hannah. (Hannah's dad is Lena's ex-boyfriend). Then, they learn that Lars fathered Jonathan with Lena, and that Lena got very sick after giving birth to a second child named Sara. She developed a postpartum infection, which went untreated, and she and Sara both end up dead.
After this trauma, Lars started abducting and killing other women who reminded him of Lena, like Jasmin.
In the final episode, Jasmin, who has been living as "Lena," tries to hide a knife in her sleeve, and viewers see Lars watching Jasmin via house cam footage. (Hannah has escaped from her grandparents home, and is also living with Lars. Jonathan, on the other hand, is "living in a clinic for children dealing with psychological trauma," Netflix explains.)
And this is where things get intense. Hannah asks Lars to go to the beach with Jasmin. On the beach, Lars takes Jasmin's hidden knife. Jasmin pretends to faint, but then pulls a shard of glass out of her underwear, and stabs Lars in the neck. “I’m not pregnant,” she says. “I’m not Lena! I’m Jasmin!” Lars is bleeding out as Jasmin and Hannah walk away.
The very last few scenes find Jasmin living by herself, Jonathan at the clinic, and Hannah talking to a therapist, per Netflix.
Is Lars dead?
Yes, Lars dies at the end of the series after Jasmin stabs him in the neck on the beach. As he bleeds out, Lars reveals to a policeman who arrives on scene where he buried the real Lena and baby Sara several years before.
Did he kill Lena?
Yes and no. Lars' actions created a scenario that led to Lena's death. As the finale of the miniseries reveals, Lena developed an infection after giving birth to her third child, but Lars denied her medical care. She died as a result.
You can watch Dear Child, streaming now on Netflix.
Korin Miller
Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
