Gal Gadot: The Rise of an Israeli Icon

Early Life

Gal Gadot was born in Petah Tikva, Israel, and in 1993, at the age of 8, she moved with her family to live in the Givat Tzvi neighborhood of Rosh HaAyin. Her father, Michael (Micah) Gadot, is an engineer and tech entrepreneur, while her mother, Irit (née Weiss), is a teacher. Gal has a younger sister named Dana. Her family's original surname was "Greenstein" before they changed it.

Her grandparents immigrated to Israel as Holocaust survivors. In her youth, she studied jazz and hip-hop dance for 12 years. She graduated from Givat HaMoreh High School with a focus on biology. During her teenage years, she worked as a babysitter and at Burger King.

In 2005, at the age of 20, Gal Gadot enlisted in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) after winning the Miss Israel competition. She served as a combat fitness instructor in the IDF for two years. In 2007, she enrolled in law and international relations studies at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya but soon decided to pursue an acting career. She briefly returned to her studies in 2008 but eventually left them behind.

Modeling Career

In 2004, shortly after winning the title of Miss Israel at the age of 18.5, Gal Gadot was signed by the "Elite" modeling agency. She represented Israel in the Miss Universe competition, and during an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth, she revealed, "I didn't want to win. I thought that it was too big a responsibility for an 18-19-year-old girl. I decided that I didn't want to continue with this competition.

I couldn't speak English, and I wore almost all the wrong things. I won with my loss." In 2007, Gadot was featured in a photo campaign initiated by the Israeli Ministry of Tourism, and she also appeared in an event by the Israeli consulate in New York in collaboration with the American magazine "Maxim."

The main photo of her in a swimsuit was also featured on the cover of "The New York Post" under the headline "Piece in the Middle East," sponsored by the Israeli Foreign Ministry. These photos gained international attention, sparking debates about their provocative nature. Gadot's exposure led her to become the international face of "Perry Ellis" fragrance.

From 2008 to 2016, she served as the spokesperson for the Israeli fashion company "Castro," initially alongside Jonathan Vogelman. In 2009, Gal Gadot signed with the international modeling agency "IMG," becoming the first Israeli to be represented by the agency. In 2013, she starred in a campaign for the Canadian skincare brand "Vine Vera." From 2014 to 2016, she served as the spokesperson for the Israeli skincare brand "Carolina."

From 2015 to 2016, she was the spokesperson for the "Bamboo" perfume of the Italian fashion brand "Gucci." From 2016 to 2017, Gadot became the international face of the Italian fashion network "Miss Sixty." In 2016 and 2017, she represented the Israeli eyewear brand "Erroca." In 2018, she was chosen as the spokesperson for the global sports brand "Reebok" with a two-year contract. In 2018, Gal Gadot became the spokesperson for the American cosmetics brand "Revlon," and from 2019, she has been the face of "Hot."

Throughout her career, Gal Gadot has graced the covers of numerous international magazines, including "FHM" (Australia), "Sixdegrees" (USA), "Fashion" (USA), "American Cinematographer" (USA), "Marie Claire" (USA, Australia, Hungary), "IO Donna" (Italy), "Entertainment Weekly" (USA), "W" (USA), "Veronica" (Netherlands), "TVMedia" (Austria), "TELE" (Switzerland), "Imagnes" (Spain), "Empire" (UK), "Glamour" (Mexico, USA), "Oh!" (Dominican Republic), "Cine Premiere" (Mexico), "Cleo" (Indonesia), "Total Film" (UK), and "Grazia" (China).

Gal Gadot has also been featured on covers of Israeli magazines, including "LaIsha" (7 times), "Go" (3 times), "At," "Cosmopolitan Bride," "Maariv LaNoar" (twice), "Blazer," and "Pnai Plus."

Acting Career

In August 2007, Gal Gadot took on the leading role in the Israeli drama series "Bubot" on HOT3 channel, playing a religious girl named Miriam (Miri) Alkayam. In 2008, she participated in the Israeli reality show "Tachpis Tachpis," performing the song "Ma'ohavet" alongside Guy Zo-Aretz. In 2009, she appeared in the Hollywood film "Fast & Furious 4," where she portrayed former Mossad agent Gisele Yashar, starring alongside Vin Diesel and Paul Walker.

In the same year, she also played the role of Lisa in a guest appearance on the successful American HBO series "Entourage." In an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth in March 2013, Gadot expressed her feelings about working on "Entourage," saying, "I simply didn't enjoy working with them; Adrian Grenier (the star of the series) tried to hit on me, and when I turned him down, he made my life miserable." Also in the same year, she portrayed Olivia in the drama miniseries "The Beautiful Life" created by Ashton Kutcher, which aired on the American CW channel.

Gal Gadot's journey from beauty queen to global superstar has been nothing short of remarkable. With her talent, beauty, and dedication to her craft, she has become an international icon and an inspiration to many. As she continues to shine on the big screen and in the world of fashion, Gal Gadot's star shows no signs of dimming.