Amit Rahav

{{Infobox person

| name = Amit Rahav

| native_name = עמית רהב

| native_name_lang = he

| image = Amit Rahab.jpg

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1995|08|09}}

| birth_place = Tel Aviv, Israel

| occupation = Actor

| years_active = 2014–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.{{Cite web|url=https://www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/1264041/Unorthodox-Netflix-cast-who-is-Amit-Rahav-Yanky-actor|title=Unorthodox cast: Who is Amit Rahav? Meet the Unorthodox star|last=Mitchell|first=Molli|date=2020-04-24|website=Express.co.uk|access-date=2020-04-29}}[https://www.thejc.com/life-and-culture/what-yanky-shapiro-of-unorthodox-did-next-wxpurs5t What Yanky Shapiro of Unorthodox did next] The Jewish Chronicle. 14 February 2024

Early life

Rahav was born in Tel Aviv, Israel to a British mother and Israeli father, and he grew up in an English-speaking household.{{Cite web|url=https://seriesmania.com/en/festival/invite/amit-rahav/|title=Amit Rahav|website=Festival Séries Mania|access-date=2020-04-29}}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} His parents are divorced.{{Cite news|last=Soroka|first=Lior|date=2020-05-15|title=Portrait zu "Unorthodox"-Star Amit Rahav: Nicht weiter in Angst leben|language=de|work=Die Tageszeitung: taz|url=https://taz.de/!5682382/|access-date=2020-05-23|issn=0931-9085}} He was raised as a secular Jew and continues to define himself as such. His grandmother is a Holocaust survivor.[https://variety.com/2024/tv/columns/we-were-the-lucky-ones-amit-rahav-grandmother-holocaust-survivor-hulu-1235961810/ ‘We Were the Lucky Ones’ Actor Amit Rahav Honors His Grandmother, a Holocaust Survivor, With Hulu’s WWII Drama] Variety. 5 April 2024

At 18, he began serving a three-year term in the Israel Defense Forces in the theater and entertainment troop. He was a drama counselor in Clayton, Georgia at Camp Ramah Darom for three months in summer 2016 through the Jewish Agency for Israel.{{Cite web|url=https://www.heyalma.com/18-things-to-know-about-amit-rahav-aka-yanky-in-unorthodox/|title=18 Things to Know About Amit Rahav, AKA Yanky in 'Unorthodox'|date=2020-04-29|website=Alma|access-date=2020-04-30}}{{Cite web|url=http://reshetramah.org/blog/from-ramah-darom-to-netflix/|title=Israeli Actor Amit Rahav's Journey from Camp Ramah Darom To Netflix's 'Unorthodox'|date=2020-04-22|website=Reshet Ramah|access-date=2020-04-30}}{{Cite web|title=Netflix's 'Unorthodox' Exposes Extremes|url=https://atlantajewishtimes.timesofisrael.com/netflixs-unorthodox-exposes-extremes/|last=Jaffe|first=Marcia Caller|date=2020-05-18|website=Atlanta Jewish Times|access-date=2020-05-23}}

Career

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.

In 2015, he appeared in two episodes of the American thriller TV series Dig.{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3597606/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_5|title=Amit Rahav|publisher=IMDb}}

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.{{Cite web|url=https://awiderbridge.org/israel-first-gay-character-in-childrens-show/|title=Israel: First Gay Character in Children's Show|last=Dekel|first=Yanir|date=December 16, 2016|website=A Wider Bridge|access-date=2020-04-30}}[https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-work-in-progress-with-sop-49346947/episode/work-in-progress-amit-rahav-194365696/ Work in Progress: Amit Rahav] iheart. 11 July 2024

In 2021, Rahav starred as Yanky Shapiro in the German-American Netflix original miniseries Unorthodox.{{Cite web|url=https://vertigomag.co.uk/film/25-facts-about-netflix-series-unorthodox/|title=25 FACTS ABOUT NETFLIX SERIES UNORTHODOX|date=2020-03-30|website=VERTIGO Magazine|access-date=2020-04-30}} In April 2020, he signed with talent agency Lighthouse Management & Media.{{Cite web|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/unorthodox-star-amit-rahav-signs-192458295.html|title='Unorthodox' Star Amit Rahav Signs With Lighthouse Management & Media|website=finance.yahoo.com|date=17 April 2020|access-date=2020-04-30}}

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.[https://www.jerusalem-theatre.co.il/files/Summer%202022%20Magazine.pdf Summer 2022] Jerusalem Theatre. Retrieved on 9 July 2024 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.[https://www.jpost.com/365days/-theatre/article-725593 Israeli play featuring Netflix actors opens major theater festival in Cyprus] The Jerusalem Post. 22 December 2022[https://embassies.gov.il/nicosia-en/NewsAndEvents/Pages/HaBima-National-Theatre-of-Israel---The-One-My-Soul-Loves.aspx HaBima-National Theatre's performance in Cyprus] Embassy of Israel in Cyprus. 29 October 2022[https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/the-one-my-soul-loves/ The One my Soul Loves] The Times of Israel. 17 December 2023

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

Personal life

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. He is openly gay.

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.{{Cite web|title='Unorthodox' Star Amit Rahav on Working With Shira Haas, Emmy Buzz and Being a Role Model for LGBTQ Youth|url=https://variety.com/2020/tv/podcasts/amit-rahav-unorthodox-shira-haas-emmys-1234604572/|last=Malkin|first=Marc|date=2020-05-14|website=Variety|access-date=2020-05-15}}{{Cite web|date=2021-01-27|title='Unorthodox' Star Shira Haas Shares How She Met TV Husband Amit Rahav|url=https://www.thethings.com/unorthodox-star-shira-haas-shares-how-she-met-tv-husband-amit-rahav/|access-date=2021-04-18|website=TheThings}}

He speaks fluent Hebrew and English, and he is a vegetarian.{{Cite web|date=2020-06-22|title=Amit Rahav Is Our New Religion|url=https://www.papermag.com/amit-rahav-netflix-unorthodox-pride-2646204346.html?rebelltitem=12#rebelltitem12?rebelltitem=12|access-date=2021-04-18|website=PAPER}}

In 2024, he relocated to Los Angeles.

Filmography

= Television =

class="wikitable"

!Year

!Title

!Role

!Notes

!Ref.

2014-2016

|Mishpacha Sholelet

|Hanan

|Occurring character

2015

|Dig

|Aaron

|2 episodes
USA Network TV series

2015

|L'Hitgaber

|Israeli teen TV series

|{{Cite web|url=https://www.add-ca.com/talents/amit-rahav/|title=Amit Rahav|website=ADD|access-date=2020-04-30}}

2015

|Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race

|Mickey

|Hebrew voiceover

2016

|Wild Horses

|Nadav

|1 episode

2016

|Flashback

|Aviv

|Israeli teen TV series

2018

|Trening

|Stav

|Israeli children's series

2020

|Cash Register

|Michael Eshet Bloom

|1 episode

2020

|Unorthodox

|Yanky Shapiro

|Main role
Netflix miniseries

2023

|Transatlantic

|Thomas Lovegrove

|Netflix miniseries

|{{Cite web |last=Rice |first=Lynette |date=2022-12-06 |title='We Were The Lucky Ones': Amit Rahav, Eva Feiler, Hadas Yaron Join Hulu Originals Limited Series |url=https://deadline.com/2022/12/we-were-the-lucky-ones-amit-rahav-eva-feiler-hadas-yaron-join-hulu-originals-limited-series-1235190189/ |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=Deadline}}

2024

|We Were the Lucky Ones

|Jakob

|Hulu limited series

= Film =

class="wikitable"

!Year

!Title

!Role

!Notes

!Ref.

2018

|The Damned

|Aviv

|Israeli film

2022

|Matchmaking

|Moti

|Israeli film

|{{Cite web |title=Matchmaking |url=https://miamijewishfilmfestival.org/films/2023/matchmaking |access-date=2023-01-21 |website=Miami Jewish Film Festival}}

2024

|Matchmaking 2

|Aviv

|Israeli film

|[https://www.edb.co.il/blog/archives/33698 החלו צילומי סרט ההמשך הישראלי "בחורים טובים 2" עם הזוג ניב סולטן ומאור שוויצר] edb.co.il. 26 February 2024

Stage

class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" !scope="col"\|Year !scope="col"\|Title !scope="col"\|Role !scope="col"\|Venue !scope="col" class="unsortable"\|{{tooltip\|Ref.\|Reference(s)}}
scope="row"\|2021 \|The One My Soul Loves \|Yehonatan \|Habima Theatre \|style="text-align:center;"\|

class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"

!scope="col"|Year

!scope="col"|Title

!scope="col"|Role

!scope="col"|Venue

!scope="col" class="unsortable"|{{tooltip|Ref.|Reference(s)}}

scope="row"|2021

|The One My Soul Loves

|Yehonatan

|Habima Theatre

|style="text-align:center;"|