Amit Rahav (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

: עמית רהב; born 9 August 1995) is an Israeli actor. A graduate of Yoram Loewenstein Performing Arts Studio in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

, 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 Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

miniseries ''

Unorthodox Unorthodox may refer to: Music * Unorthodox (band), an American doom metal band * ''Unorthodox'' (Edge of Sanity album), 1992 * ''Unorthodox'' (Snow Tha Product album), 2011 * "Unorthodox" (Joey Badass song), 2013 * "Unorthodox" (Wretch 32 so ...

'' (2020). He has since starred in the Netflix miniseries ''

Transatlantic Transatlantic, Trans-Atlantic or TransAtlantic may refer to: Film * Transatlantic Pictures, a film production company from 1948 to 1950 * Transatlantic Enterprises, an American production company in the late 1970s * ''Transatlantic'' (1931 film) ...

'' (2023) and the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

family drama limited series, '' We Were the Lucky Ones'' (2024) for

Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...

.What Yanky Shapiro of Unorthodox did next
''The Jewish Chronicle''. 14 February 2024

Early life

Rahav was born in

Tel Aviv, Israel Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

to a British mother and Israeli father, and he grew up in an English-speaking household. His parents are divorced. He was raised as a secular Jew and continues to define himself as such. His grandmother is a

Holocaust survivor Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, its collaborators before and during World War II ...

. At 18, he began serving a three-year term in the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

in the theater and entertainment troop. He was a drama counselor in

Clayton, Georgia Clayton is a city in Rabun County, Georgia, United States. Its population was 2,003 at the 2020 census. The county seat of Rabun County, it is in the Blue Ridge Mountains. History The area that eventually became Clayton was called the Dividi ...

at Camp Ramah Darom for three months in summer 2016 through the

Jewish Agency for Israel The Jewish Agency for Israel (), formerly known as the Jewish Agency for Palestine, is the largest Jewish non-profit organization in the world. It was established in 1929 as the operative branch of the World Zionist Organization (WZO). As an ...

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''. 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 Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

as gay.Work in Progress: Amit Rahav
iheart. 11 July 2024 In 2021, Rahav starred as Yanky Shapiro in the German-American

original miniseries ''Unorthodox''. In April 2020, he signed with talent agency Lighthouse Management & Media. In 2021, he played the protagonist, Yehonatan alongside Daniel Litman in '' The One My Soul Loves'' at the

Habima Theatre The Habima Theatre ( ''Te'atron HaBima'', lit. "The Stage Theatre") is the List of national theatres, national theatre of Israel and one of the first Hebrew language theatres. It is located in Habima Square in the center of Tel Aviv. History ...

. The play is based on the true events of the Tel Aviv gay centre shooting and deals with

conversion therapy Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, romantic orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. Methods that have ...

. He returned to the role for a special performance at Nicosia Municipal Theatre in

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

in October 2022 and then for a second run at Habima Theatre in December 2023.Israeli play featuring Netflix actors opens major theater festival in Cyprus
''The Jerusalem Post''. 22 December 2022HaBima-National Theatre's performance in Cyprus
Embassy of Israel in Cyprus. 29 October 2022The 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 ''

'' co-star

Shira Haas Shira Haas (born ) is an Israeli actress. She first rose to local prominence for her role in the television series '' Shtisel'' (2013–2021). Her international breakthrough came with her portrayal of Esther "Esty" Shapiro in the Netflix minis ...

have been friends since 2010, after meeting at a party at age 15. The two are neighbors in

. He speaks fluent

and English, and he is a vegetarian. In 2024, he relocated to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Filmography

Television

Film

Stage

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rahav, Amit 1995 births 21st-century Israeli male actors Male actors from Tel Aviv Yoram Loewenstein Performing Arts Studio alumni Living people Israeli people of British descent Jewish Israeli male actors Israeli gay actors Gay Jews Yiddish film actors 21st-century Israeli LGBTQ people