Jack Lupino (flashback)

Lore & Background

Jack Lupino was a former Gunnery Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps who became one of the earliest test subjects for Valkyr, a drug developed by the Aesir Corporation under military contract to create super-soldiers. According to a video shown to Max Payne, Lupino was one of Aesir's successful test subjects. In the video, Lupino explains that while taking the drug, he feels invincible and suffers none of the side effects. After the project was terminated, Lupino became a powerful gangster involved with the trafficking of Valkyr as a designer drug. Max Payne confronts Lupino at his warehouse hideout, and the two men fight until Lupino gains the upper hand. Max's defeat appears certain until B.B. Hensley—Aesir's head of security—arrives and shoots Lupino dead.

In Their Own Story

The warehouse was a cathedral of concrete and shadow, the air thick with the chemical stench of Valkyr. Max moved through the maze of crates, his gun held low, his breath a ghost in the cold. Then Lupino stepped out—a bull of a man, his eyes wild with the drug's fire. 'I feel invincible,' he had said in the video, and now he moved like a force of nature, fists swinging, laughter booming. Max fired, but Lupino shrugged off the bullets, his body a machine of rage and Valkyr. He slammed Max against a wall, the detective's vision swimming. Just as Lupino's hands closed around Max's throat, a shot rang out. B.B. Hensley stood in the doorway, smoking gun in hand. Lupino crumpled, his invincibility a lie, his reign of pain ended by a traitor's bullet.

Reader's Guide

Jack Lupino appears in the film *Max Payne* as a mid-story antagonist. He is introduced through a video recording that Max and Mona Sax watch, which explains the Valkyr project and features Lupino as a successful test subject. In the video, Lupino claims he feels invincible while taking the drug and suffers none of the side effects. Max later tracks Lupino to his warehouse hideout, where a confrontation occurs. The fight is brutal: Lupino gains the upper hand and appears ready to kill Max. However, B.B. Hensley intervenes, shooting Lupino dead. This scene is a turning point in the film, as it reveals B.B.'s involvement with Aesir and sets up the final confrontation. Lupino's role is limited to these two scenes—the video and the warehouse fight—but he serves as a key link between the Valkyr project and the criminal underworld.

Did You Know?

• Jack Lupino is portrayed by Amaury Nolasco, who played the character in the 2008 film *Max Payne*.
• Lupino was a former Gunnery Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps before becoming a test subject for Valkyr.
• In the film, Lupino claims he feels invincible while taking Valkyr and suffers none of the side effects that drove other subjects insane.
• Lupino is killed by B.B. Hensley, not by Max Payne, during their confrontation at the warehouse hideout.
• The video featuring Lupino explaining his invincibility on Valkyr is shown to Max and Mona by Jason Colvin as evidence of the Valkyr project.