Nowadays, everyone knows who Gal Gadot is. If not by name, then certainly by face, thanks to her stepping into the iconic role of DC's Wonder Woman, an Amazonian known as Princess Diana of Themyscira when she's not fighting crime. Gadot was first seen on screen as the hero in the 2016 film Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice.
In 2017, Wonder Woman, Gadot's first solo film as the hero, directed by Patty Jenkins was released to massive praise. Gadot appeared as Wonder Woman again, in 2017's Justice League. Jenkins' follow up about the iconic female hero, Wonder Woman 1984, is currently scheduled to be released on August 14, 2020, after being pushed back from its June 5th release date, due to the Coronavirus. Almost everyone agrees that it seems as if Gal Gadot was made for the role, but who was she before she was Wonder Woman?
15 Gadot Grew Up In A Small Town In Israel
Gal Gadot, born on April 30, 1985, grew up in a small town in Israel called Rosh Haayin, with her parents, Irit and Michael Gadot, and younger sister Dana. Gadot has said that it was a "very Jewish, Israeli family environment", and that she spent plenty of time playing outdoors.
14 Growing Up, Gadot Wanted To Be A Dance Choreographer
Gadot has made it no secret that although she liked the spotlight as a child, she never suspected acting was the career for her until she was already doing it. Growing up, Gadot dreamed of being a dance choreographer, telling the Sydney Morning Herald , "I danced for 12 years- ballet, hip-hop, and jazz."
13 In 2004, Gadot Was Crowned Miss Israel
In a Rolling Stone interview, Gadot revealed that her mom and a friend submitted her to be in the Miss Israel pageant. Although she wasn't particularly interested in doing it, she figured it would be a good experience, and a chance to travel. She ended up winning and going on to compete in Miss Universe, which she purposely tanked.
12 After Her Pageant Experience, She Started Modeling
Taking part in the Miss Israel and Miss Universe pageants brought her into the modeling world. Gadot still wasn't too keen on the thought of doing work based off of her looks, but she now had an agent, and did modeling jobs on the side, while in the military, and in school, and continues to model while maintaining her acting career.
11 Gadot Served In The Israeli Military
Every Israeli citizen is required to serve two years in the Israeli Defense Forces. Gadot's active childhood helped her land the gig of a combat instructor, where she trained soldiers in a boot camp. In 2007, Gadot was even featured in Maxim's Women of the IDF photo shoot.
10 Gadot Studied Law
When Gal Gadot was finished serving her time in the IDF, she decided to go to school to study law and international relations. She was still doing modeling gigs, and during this time was when her agent started to try to convince her to go out for some acting auditions. We're glad she did.
9 Gal Gadot Married Yaron Varsano In 2008
Gal Gadot met Yaron Varsano at a mutual friend's yoga retreat in the desert in 2006, where they instantly connected. They started dating soon after, and Varsano told Gadot that he wouldn't wait long to marry her. The couple, who are ten years apart, then married two years later.
8 Gadot Is A Mother To Two Daughters
Gadot, and Varsano have two daughters, Alma, and Maya. Gadot found out she was pregnant with her second daughter while filming Justice League, filming the movie, and Wonder Woman reshoots while pregnant. Gadot says in the beginning she struggled with feeling guilty about being a working mother, and still sometimes does, but is glad her daughters will see her portraying this strong, iconic female super hero.
7 Gadot And Varsano Owned A Boutique Hotel In Tel Aviv
Gadot's husband, Varsano is an Israeli real estate developer. While Gadot and Varsano were spending lots of time going back and forth between Israel and Los Angeles for Gadot's acting career, they stayed in plenty of hotels, and wanted them to feel like home, getting inspiration to later open their own. They sold the hotel, The Varsano, in 2015.
6 Her First Acting Audition Ever Was To Be A Bond Girl
While Gadot was still in school, and occasionally modeling, her agent convinced her to go out for an audition as a Bond girl, after the casting director saw her picture at the agency. Even though Gadot wasn't fully comfortable with the idea of acting, especially in a fully English speaking role, she went to the audition anyway, however the role ended up going to Olga Kurylenko.
5 Her First Role Was In The Israeli Drama Tv Show, Bubot
It turns out, Gadot must have liked acting, because after auditioning for the Bond role, Gadot decided to get an acting coach. Eventually, the actress landed her first onscreen role in an Israeli tv drama, Bubot, which is when she decided to stop working toward her law degree. However, the show was short lived, and only ran from 2007 to 2008.
4 She Finally Landed Her Breakout Role In Fast & Furious
The same casting director that was interested in Gadot for the Bond girl role, eventually cast Gadot in her first major role as Gisele in Fast & Furious. Her character even returned in the franchise's fifth, sixth, and seventh movies. Gadot is known for performing many of her own stunts in the films.
3 She Was Almost The Star Of Mad Max: Fury Road
Like most actors, Gadot has plenty of roles that she auditioned for, but ultimately wasn't cast in. One of those that could have been her big break was the role of Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road. While Gadot was runner up for the role, Charlize Theron was cast.
2 She's Had Many Roles In Action- Comedy Films
In between her work in the Fast and Furious franchise, and landing the role of Wonder Woman, Gadot has appeared in a handful of action/comedy films, some with small roles, like in Date Night, and Knight and Day, others with starring roles, such as in the film Keeping Up With The Joneses.
1 Gadot Listened To Beyonce To Inspire Her While Auditioning For Wonder Woman
When Gadot was auditioning for her role in Batman V Superman, she didn't know that it was for Wonder Woman. She was up against six or seven other women, and her nerves got the best of her while waiting for her turn to audition. To help calm herself down, she told W Magazine that she decided to put on some Beyonce, saying “Who runs the world? Girls! I just started to dance, and I let my anxiety go. Thank you, Beyoncé!”
Sources: W Magazine, Rolling Stone, Glamour, The Sydney Morning Herald, Vanity Fair