Israeli actresses, directors make waves in Hollywood
Gal Gadot to reprise Wonder Woman role in 3 additional movies, in talks over role of Esther in remake of 1959 classic 'Ben Hur'; Noa Tishby cast in TV show 'Dig'; Israelis behind 'Big Bad Wolves' to direct American version of movie 'Vengeance.'
Gal Gadot is well on her way to take over Hollywood. After scoring the role of Wonder Woman in the movie "Batman vs. Superman" (to hit screens in March 2016), Gadot is expected to reprise her role as the female heroine in three additional major films.
After starring alongside Ben Affleck (Batman) and Henry Cavill (Superman), she will get a Wonder Woman film of her own, set to come out in 2017. Later that year, Gadot will appear in "Justice League Part 1," a sort of sequel to "Batman vs. Superman," and in 2019, Wonder Woman will return in "Justice League Part 2."
Alongside the comics-based movies, Gadot was also said to be in negotiations for the leading female role of Esther in a remake of the 1959 classic "Ben-Hur," produced by Paramount Pictures and MGM, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The official casting announcement is said to be waiting on the two sides to finish ironing out Gadot's contract.
If given the role of Esther, Gadot will star alongside Jack Huston (Boardwalk Empire) who will play Ben-Hur and Morgan Freeman who will play Ben-Hur's mentor Ildarin.
Noa Tishby cast in 'Dig'
Gadot is not the only Israeli actress making her way in Hollywood. Actress and producer Noa Tishby was cast in "Dig," a new TV show by Israeli producer Gideon Raff (the man behind "Homeland" and the original Israeli version "Hatufim"). The show focuses on an FBI agent - played by Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter) - who is based in Jerusalem and discovers a plot that dates back 2000 years during a murder investigation.
Tishby won't be the only Israeli actress in "Dig," she will be joined by Assi Cohen, Shmil Ben Ari and Yehuda Levy.
The production was supposed to film in Jerusalem and pre-production in the capital have already begun - but filming was moved to Malta during Operation Protective Edge. This move was a big financial loss to the Israeli television industry that hoped the show will draw more foreign productions to the country.
From 'Big Bad Wolves' to 'Vengeance'
Israeli directors Navot Papushado and Aharon Keshales were chosen to create a Hollywood remake to the French-Hong Kong thriller "Vengeance" from 2009.
Sony Pictures Entertainment, that acquired the rights to the film, has selected the Israeli duo to write and direct the American version.
"We're still letting the great news sink in," the two told Ynet. "Directing a revenge thriller for Sony is a dream come true and we're excited to go on this new adventure."
"Vengeance" tells the story of a French chef who vows revenge after his daughter's family is viciously attacked in Hong Kong, her husband and children murdered. To catch the perpetrators, the chef hires three local assassins. There's still no release date for the movie.
Papushado and Keshales are behind Israeli horror movie "Rabies" (2010), and crime thriller "Big Bad Wolves" (2013). "Big Bad Wolves" won a lot of praise, including from Quentin Tarantino, who called it the best film of 2013. It also won best movie and best script in the Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal, and was nominated for 11 Ofir prizes (the Israeli-equivalent of the Oscars), winning five of them.
While this is the first time the two take on a big American production, they have some experience in the industry. They've worked on horror anthology "ABCs of Death 2," an international production combining creators from all over the world.
The segment Papushado and Keshales contributed to the production deals with a female IDF officer who is wounded and in peril after a botched parachuting and the only one who can help her is an Arab teenager. It has already received positive reviews in the US.
Ran Boker and Ynet contributed to this report.
