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Amit Rahav

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Amit Rahav
עמית רהב
Born (1995-08-09) 9 August 1995 (age 29)
Tel Aviv, Israel
OccupationActor
Years active2014–present

Amit Rahav (Hebrew: עמית רהב; born 9 August 1995) is an Israeli actor.

A graduate of Yoram Loewenstein Performing Arts Studio in Tel Aviv, he began his career on the Israeli stage. He landed his first TV role in Mishpacha Sholetet (2014–2016). He became known to international audiences for his role as Yanky Shapiro in the Netflix miniseries Unorthodox (2020). He has since starred in the Netflix miniseries Transatlantic (2023) and the Holocaust family drama limited series, We Were the Lucky Ones (2024) for Hulu.[1][2]

Early life

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Rahav was born in Tel Aviv, Israel to a British mother and Israeli father, and he grew up in an English-speaking household.[3] His parents are divorced.[4] He was raised as a secular Jew and continues to define himself as such.[5] His grandmother is a Holocaust survivor.[6]

At 18, he began serving a three-year term in the Israel Defense Forces in the theater and entertainment troop.[1] He was a drama counselor in Clayton, Georgia at Camp Ramah Darom for three months in summer 2016 through the Jewish Agency for Israel.[7][8][9]

Career

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Since he left the military, Rahav has appeared in various movies and television shows. His first significant role was on the Israeli TV show, Mishpacha Sholetet, and he has since acted in various other Israeli shows.[7] In 2015, he appeared in two episodes of the American thriller TV series Dig.[10]

In 2016, he appeared in Flashback, an Israeli show for teenagers. He made history, as his character, Aviv was the first on an Israeli teen show to come out as gay.[11][12]

In 2021, Rahav starred as Yanky Shapiro in the German-American Netflix original miniseries Unorthodox.[13] In April 2020, he signed with talent agency Lighthouse Management & Media.[14]

In 2021, he played the protagonist, Yehonatan alongside Daniel Litman in The One My Soul Loves at the Habima Theatre. The play is based on the true events of the Tel Aviv gay centre shooting and deals with conversion therapy.[15] He returned to the role for a special performance at Nicosia Municipal Theatre in Nicosia in Cyprus in October 2022 and then for a second run at Habima Theatre in December 2023.[16][17][18]

In 2022 he starred in the Haredi comedy film, Matchmaking. In 2024, he began filming a sequel to the film, alongside Niv Sultan.[19]

Personal life

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Rahav is a graduate of the Yoram Loewenstein Performing Arts Studio in Tel Aviv. He took time off school to film Unorthodox and had to re-audition to continue attending.[7][2] He is openly gay.[7]

Rahav and his Unorthodox co-star Shira Haas have been friends since 2010, after meeting at a party at age 15. The two are neighbors in Tel Aviv.[5][20]

He speaks fluent Hebrew and English,[3] and he is a vegetarian.[21]

In 2024, he relocated to Los Angeles.[12]

Filmography

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Television

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Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2014-2016 Mishpacha Sholelet Hanan Occurring character
2015 Dig Aaron 2 episodes
USA Network TV series 		[10]
2015 L'Hitgaber Israeli teen TV series [22]
2015 Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race Mickey Hebrew voiceover [22]
2016 Wild Horses Nadav 1 episode [22]
2016 Flashback Aviv Israeli teen TV series [22]
2018 Trening Stav Israeli children's series [7]
2020 Cash Register Michael Eshet Bloom 1 episode [10]
2020 Unorthodox Yanky Shapiro Main role
Netflix miniseries 		[7]
2023 Transatlantic Thomas Lovegrove Netflix miniseries [23]
2024 We Were the Lucky Ones Jakob Hulu limited series [23]

Film

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Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2018 The Damned Aviv Israeli film [10]
2022 Matchmaking Moti Israeli film [24]
2024 Matchmaking 2 Aviv Israeli film [19]

Stage

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Year Title Role Venue Ref.
2021 The One My Soul Loves Yehonatan Habima Theatre [16]

Awards

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Year Organization Category Nominated Work Result
2021 Independent Spirit Awards Best Male Performance in a New Scripted Series Unorthodox Won

References

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  1. ^ a b Mitchell, Molli (2020-04-24). "Unorthodox cast: Who is Amit Rahav? Meet the Unorthodox star". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-04-29.
  2. ^ a b What Yanky Shapiro of Unorthodox did next The Jewish Chronicle. 14 February 2024
  3. ^ a b "Amit Rahav". Festival Séries Mania. Retrieved 2020-04-29.[permanent dead link‍]
  4. ^ Soroka, Lior (2020-05-15). "Portrait zu "Unorthodox"-Star Amit Rahav: Nicht weiter in Angst leben". Die Tageszeitung: taz (in German). ISSN 0931-9085. Retrieved 2020-05-23.
  5. ^ a b Malkin, Marc (2020-05-14). "'Unorthodox' Star Amit Rahav on Working With Shira Haas, Emmy Buzz and Being a Role Model for LGBTQ Youth". Variety. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  6. ^ ‘We Were the Lucky Ones’ Actor Amit Rahav Honors His Grandmother, a Holocaust Survivor, With Hulu’s WWII Drama Variety. 5 April 2024
  7. ^ a b c d e f "18 Things to Know About Amit Rahav, AKA Yanky in 'Unorthodox'". Alma. 2020-04-29. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  8. ^ "Israeli Actor Amit Rahav's Journey from Camp Ramah Darom To Netflix's 'Unorthodox'". Reshet Ramah. 2020-04-22. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  9. ^ Jaffe, Marcia Caller (2020-05-18). "Netflix's 'Unorthodox' Exposes Extremes". Atlanta Jewish Times. Retrieved 2020-05-23.
  10. ^ a b c d "Amit Rahav". IMDb.
  11. ^ Dekel, Yanir (December 16, 2016). "Israel: First Gay Character in Children's Show". A Wider Bridge. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  12. ^ a b Work in Progress: Amit Rahav iheart. 11 July 2024
  13. ^ "25 FACTS ABOUT NETFLIX SERIES UNORTHODOX". VERTIGO Magazine. 2020-03-30. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  14. ^ "'Unorthodox' Star Amit Rahav Signs With Lighthouse Management & Media". finance.yahoo.com. 17 April 2020. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  15. ^ Summer 2022 Jerusalem Theatre. Retrieved on 9 July 2024
  16. ^ a b Israeli play featuring Netflix actors opens major theater festival in Cyprus The Jerusalem Post. 22 December 2022
  17. ^ HaBima-National Theatre's performance in Cyprus Embassy of Israel in Cyprus. 29 October 2022
  18. ^ The One my Soul Loves The Times of Israel. 17 December 2023
  19. ^ a b החלו צילומי סרט ההמשך הישראלי "בחורים טובים 2" עם הזוג ניב סולטן ומאור שוויצר edb.co.il. 26 February 2024
  20. ^ "'Unorthodox' Star Shira Haas Shares How She Met TV Husband Amit Rahav". TheThings. 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2021-04-18.
  21. ^ "Amit Rahav Is Our New Religion". PAPER. 2020-06-22. Retrieved 2021-04-18.
  22. ^ a b c d "Amit Rahav". ADD. Retrieved 2020-04-30.
  23. ^ a b Rice, Lynette (2022-12-06). "'We Were The Lucky Ones': Amit Rahav, Eva Feiler, Hadas Yaron Join Hulu Originals Limited Series". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
  24. ^ "Matchmaking". Miami Jewish Film Festival. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
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