The character’s backstory has been explored further in the latest episodes.
Netflix thriller Money Heist has no shortage of popular characters, but undoubtedly one of the most beloved is hot-headed gang member, Tokyo (played by Úrsula Corberó).
The fiery personality has served as narrator of the series since its first season, guiding viewers through the emotional ups and downs of the Royal Mint and Bank of Spain heists (for more on those, see our Money Heist recap).
She was also one of the first robbers to have her identity exposed to the general public, with all hope of a normal life disappearing once the police got hold of her real name.
After joining The Professor’s gang, she adopted a city as a pseudonym just as all the other members did, with Money Heist season five part one revealing a secret reason why she settled on Tokyo. Read on for details.
Money Heist: What is Tokyo’s real name?
Tokyo’s real name is Silene Oliveira, a fact that Money Heist viewers discover at the same time as the police in season one, when she and Rio (real name: Aníbal Cortés) are spotted on CCTV casing the Royal Mint before the job had started.
Tokyo isn’t overly troubled about her real name being public knowledge because she had little to return to in her civilian life; her mother had been her only family and she passed away shortly before the heist began.
However, there was a time when Tokyo did have someone in her life that she deeply cared for and that relationship was instrumental in helping her decide on a codename.
Money Heist: Tokyo codename meaning explained
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Money Heist season five part one introduces us to Tokyo’s first love, René, who was killed in a botched robbery shortly before the events of the first ever episode.
In a flashback scene from season five, it is revealed that the couple planned to start robbing banks so that they could escape their boring life and start a new one somewhere far away.
Fantasising about their future together whilst out at a restaurant, René asks Silene to name anywhere in the world and promises that will be the place where they reinvent themselves.
She chooses Tokyo, which explains why the city has such special meaning to her and why she would have chosen it as her codename in The Professor’s gang.
Alas, she was never able to go on her adventure with René, but did find love once more with fellow gang member, Rio.
Want more? Read our guide to the Money Heist season five, part one ending.
Money Heist season five part one is streaming on Netflix – read our guides to the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix.
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