The Most Famous

ACTORS from Israel

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This page contains a list of the greatest Israeli Actors. The pantheon dataset contains 13,578 Actors, 27 of which were born in Israel. This makes Israel the birth place of the 34th most number of Actors behind Iran, and Taiwan.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Israeli Actors of all time. This list of famous Israeli Actors is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Israeli Actors.

Photo of Gal Gadot

1. Gal Gadot (b. 1985)

With an HPI of 71.88, Gal Gadot is the most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 83 different languages on wikipedia.

Gal Gadot (pronounced [ˈɡal ɡaˈdot]; born 30 April 1985) is an Israeli actress. She gained recognition for portraying Wonder Woman in the DC Extended Universe films (2016–2023). In 2018, Gadot was named one of Time's 100 most influential people and ranked by Forbes as the tenth-highest-paid actress, later rising to third in 2020. She became the first Israeli actor to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2025. Gadot grew up in Rosh HaAyin, and first gained attention locally after winning the Miss Israel 2004, followed by two years of service in the Israel Defense Forces as a combat trainer. During this time, she participated in a Maxim photo shoot that boosted her public profile. Gadot then began modeling and endorsing various brands. She made her television debut in the Israeli drama Bubot in 2008, followed by her film debut in a supporting role as Gisele Yashar in Fast & Furious (2009), reprising it in multiple sequels. Gadot first portrayed Wonder Woman in Batman v Superman. The success of the film led to her starring in Wonder Woman (2017), which became a major box office hit. She also reprised the role in Justice League (2017) and Wonder Woman 1984 (2020), the latter of which she also co-produced. Since then, she has starred in Red Notice (2021), Death on the Nile (2022), Heart of Stone (2023), which she co-produced, and portrayed the Evil Queen in Snow White (2025). Beyond acting, Gadot and her husband have co-founded a film production company, launched a food brand, and invested in Israeli startups. She is widely celebrated in Israel as a national icon and ambassador. However, her strong support for the Israeli military and her advocacy regarding the hostage crisis have sparked both praise and criticism.

Photo of Natalie Portman

2. Natalie Portman (b. 1981)

With an HPI of 68.20, Natalie Portman is the 2nd most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 110 different languages.

Natalie Hershlag (born (1981-06-09)June 9, 1981), known professionally as Natalie Portman, is an Israeli-born American actress. She has had a prolific screen career from her teenage years and has starred in various blockbusters and independent films, receiving multiple accolades, including an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards. Portman was born in West Jerusalem and raised on Long Island, New York, where she began her acting career at twelve, starring as the young protégée of a hitman in Léon: The Professional (1994). While still in high school, she made her Broadway debut in The Diary of a Young Girl (1998) and gained international recognition for her role as Padmé Amidala in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999). From 1999 to 2003, Portman attended Harvard University, earning a bachelor's degree in psychology. During this time, she took fewer acting roles but continued to appear in the Star Wars prequel trilogy (2002 and 2005) and performed in a 2001 revival of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull at The Public Theater. Her career gained further momentum in 2004 when she won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Closer. She then played Evey Hammond in V for Vendetta (2005), Anne Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), and a troubled ballerina in Black Swan (2010), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. In the following years, Portman starred in the romantic comedy No Strings Attached (2011) and portrayed Jacqueline Kennedy in Jackie (2016), which earned her a third Academy Award nomination. She also became a prominent figure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, playing Jane Foster in Thor (2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), and Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), which established her as one of the world's highest-paid actresses. Portman has also directed the short film Eve (2008) and the biographical drama A Tale of Love and Darkness (2015), in which she also starred. In 2021, she co-founded the production company MountainA, under which she produced and starred in the film May December (2023) and the miniseries Lady in the Lake (2024). Portman is an advocate for various causes, including women’s rights, environmental issues, and animal welfare, supporting organizations like the Human Rights Foundation and the Jane Goodall Institute.

Photo of Haya Harareet

3. Haya Harareet (1931 - 2021)

With an HPI of 62.61, Haya Harareet is the 3rd most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Haya Harareet (Hebrew: חיה הררית; 20 September 1931 – 3 February 2021) was an Israeli actress and screenwriter. One of her major film roles was playing Esther, Ben Hur's love interest in the 1959 Hollywood-made film Ben-Hur.

Photo of Chaim Topol

4. Chaim Topol (1935 - 2023)

With an HPI of 62.26, Chaim Topol is the 4th most famous Israeli Actor.  His biography has been translated into 36 different languages.

Chaim Topol (Hebrew: חיים טופול‎; 9 September 1935 – 8 March 2023), mononymously known as Topol, was an Israeli actor and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of Tevye, the lead role in the stage musical Fiddler on the Roof and the 1971 film adaptation, performing this role more than 3,500 times from 1967 through 2009. Topol began acting during his Israeli army service as a member of the Nahal entertainment troupe. He later toured Israel with kibbutz theatre and satirical theatre companies. He was a co-founder of the Haifa Theatre. His breakthrough film role came in 1964 as the title character in Sallah Shabati, by Israeli writer Ephraim Kishon, for which he won a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer—Male. Topol went on to appear in more than 30 films in Israel and the United States, including Galileo (1975), Flash Gordon (1980), and For Your Eyes Only (1981). He was described as Israel's only internationally recognized entertainer from the 1960s through the 1980s. He won a Golden Globe for Best Actor and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his 1971 film portrayal of Tevye, and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor for a 1991 Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof. Topol was a founder of Variety Israel, an organization serving children with special needs, and Jordan River Village, a year-round camp for Arab and Jewish children with life-threatening illnesses, for which he served as chairman of the board. In 2015 he was awarded the Israel Prize for lifetime achievement.

Photo of Daliah Lavi

5. Daliah Lavi (1942 - 2017)

With an HPI of 61.78, Daliah Lavi is the 5th most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Daliah Lavi (born Daliah Lewinbuk or Levenbuch, Hebrew: דליה לביא [ˌdalja laˈvi]; 12 October 1942 – 3 May 2017) was an Israeli actress, singer, and model.

Photo of Yvan Attal

6. Yvan Attal (b. 1965)

With an HPI of 59.48, Yvan Attal is the 6th most famous Israeli Actor.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Yvan Attal (French pronunciation: [ivɑ̃ atal]; Hebrew: איוואן אטל; born (1965-01-04)4 January 1965) is a French actor, scriptwriter and film director.

Photo of Hiam Abbass

7. Hiam Abbass (b. 1960)

With an HPI of 59.39, Hiam Abbass is the 7th most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Hiam Abbass (Arabic: هيام عباس; Hebrew: היאם עבאס; born 30 November 1960), also spelled Hiyam Abbas, is an Israeli Arab actress and film director with Israeli and French citizenship. She is known for her roles in films such as The Syrian Bride (2004), Paradise Now (2005), Free Zone (2005), Munich (2005), The Visitor (2007), Lemon Tree (2008), Insyriated (2017), and Blade Runner 2049 (2017). She gained prominence for her role as Marcia Roy in the HBO drama series Succession (2018–2023). She has also acted in the Channel 4 series The Promise (2011), the Lifetime miniseries The Red Tent (2014), the Hulu comedy series Ramy (2019–present), and the Hulu drama series The Old Man (2022).

Photo of Gila Almagor

8. Gila Almagor (b. 1939)

With an HPI of 58.47, Gila Almagor is the 8th most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Gila Almagor Agmon (Hebrew: גילה אלמגור אגמון; born Gila Alexandrowitz; July 22, 1939) is an Israeli actress, film star, and author. In Israel, she is known as "queen of the Israeli cinema and theatre".

Photo of Ayelet Zurer

9. Ayelet Zurer (b. 1969)

With an HPI of 57.32, Ayelet Zurer is the 9th most famous Israeli Actor.  Her biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Ayelet Zurer (Hebrew: איילת זורר; born (1969-06-28)28 June 1969) is an Israeli TV and film actress. She began her career on the Israeli teen drama Inyan Shel Zman and has starred in numerous Israeli tv and film roles. She received awards for Best Actress at the Israeli Academy Awards in 2003 and Best Actress by the Israeli Academy of Television in 2006 and 2013. Zurer has also appeared in numerous in Hollywood films, such as Munich (2005), Vantage Point (2008), Angels & Demons (2009), Man of Steel (2013), and Ben-Hur (2016). She also portrayed Vanessa Marianna-Fisk in the Marvel Cinematic Universe television series Daredevil (2015–2018) and its revival series Daredevil: Born Again (2025).

Photo of Nehemiah Persoff

10. Nehemiah Persoff (1919 - 2022)

With an HPI of 57.28, Nehemiah Persoff is the 10th most famous Israeli Actor.  His biography has been translated into 26 different languages.

Nehemiah Persoff (August 2, 1919 – April 5, 2022) was an American actor and painter. He appeared in more than 200 television series, films, and theatre productions, and also performed as a voice artist in a career spanning 55 years. His first acting role was as an extra in The Naked City (1948). Persoff is best known for roles as Leo in The Harder They Fall (1956), as Little Bonaparte in Some Like It Hot (1959), as Jake "Greasy Thumb" Guzik in The Untouchables (1959–1963), as Rebbe Mendel in Yentl (1983), and as the voice of Papa Mousekewitz in the animated film An American Tail (1986) and its sequels. He also made appearances on episodes of The Twilight Zone, Gilligan's Island, Hawaii Five-O, Adam-12, and Law & Order.

People

Pantheon has 27 people classified as Israeli actors born between 1919 and 1997. Of these 27, 21 (77.78%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Israeli actors include Gal Gadot, Natalie Portman, and Yvan Attal. The most famous deceased Israeli actors include Haya Harareet, Chaim Topol, and Daliah Lavi. As of April 2024, 3 new Israeli actors have been added to Pantheon including Mohammad Bakri, Lior Ashkenazi, and Ali Suliman.

Living Israeli Actors

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Deceased Israeli Actors

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Newly Added Israeli Actors (2024)

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Overlapping Lives

Which Actors were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 5 most globally memorable Actors since 1700.