Lior Raz

Lior Raz (Hebrew: ליאור רז‎; born 24 November 1971) is an Israeli actor and screenwriter.[1][2] He is best known for portraying Doron Kavillio in the political thriller television series Fauda.

Lior Raz
Raz in 2017
Born	(1971-11-24) 24 November 1971 Ma'ale Adumim
Nationality	Israeli
Occupation	Actor and screenwriter
Years active	2000–present
Known for	Fauda television series
Spouse(s)	Meital Barda
Children	3

Early life

Raz was born in Ma'ale Adumim, an Israeli settlement of 40,000 residents in the West Bank (Judea and Samaria), seven kilometers from Jerusalem. He was raised in the city, and in Jerusalem. He is Jewish, the son of Mizrahi Jewish parents from Iraq and Algeria.[3][4] His Iraq-born father served in Shayetet 13 and in Shin Bet before later running a plant nursery.[3][5] His mother was born in Algeria, and is a teacher.[3] Raz grew up speaking Arabic with his father and grandmother in the home, and with Arab workers in his father's plant nursery who were his playmates.[5][4][3]

After Raz graduated from high school, he enlisted at age 18 in the Israel Defense Forces and became a commando in the elite undercover counter-terrorism unit known as Sayeret Duvdevan.[5][3] He also served in the Duvdevan Unit in the reserves for 20 years.[5]

For the three years, until Raz was 19, he had a girlfriend named Iris Azulai.[5][3] In October 1990 an Arab Palestinian terrorist stabbed her to death with a 15-inch knife in Jerusalem.[5][3] The terrorist was later released from prison in the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange in which 1,027 prisoners were released in order to obtain the release from captivity of the kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held prisoner by Hamas for five years.[5][3]

In 1993, after his military service, Raz moved to the United States, and was hired by a security contracting firm as Arnold Schwarzenegger's bodyguard.[4] In an interview with Israel Hayom he said: “the company turned to me since they knew my military background, for me it was the most glamorous thing, to be the watch dog of Schwarzenegger and his wife".[6]

Career

When Raz returned to Israel at age 24, he studied at Nissan Nativ Drama School in Tel Aviv.[4]

In his early acting years, Raz acted in various plays, such as Don Juan at Gesher Theater, Macbeth and The Teenagers. He also played small roles on Israeli TV series. In 2004, he played a police investigator in Michaela, and 'referee Ben Shabat' in Adumot. In 2005 he appeared as Shimi in his first feature film Gotta Be Happy. In 2008 he appeared in television drama Srugim as Yisrael, and a year later in comedy-drama Mesudarim as a Shin Bet agent, and as Maor in Noah's Ark.[4] In 2011 he played a police unit commander in Nadav Lapid's drama film Policeman, and as Asa'el in the political drama Prime Minister's Children alongside Rami Heuberger.[4]

In 2012, Raz portrayed Nissan Title in yes psychological thriller spying-drama The Gordin Cell, and appeared in the film The World is Funny as Barak.[4] In 2013, he played the role of the police commander in the fourth season of the crime drama series The Arbitrator, and in 2014 appeared in the film The Kindergarten Teacher.

In 2014, he created with Haaretz journalist Avi Issacharoff the critically acclaimed political thriller television series Fauda, in which Raz stars as Doron Kavillio, the commander of an undercover counter-terrorism Mista'arvim unit.[4] In 2016, the show won six awards, including Best Drama Series, at the Israeli Academy Awards.[7] In December 2017, The New York Times voted Fauda the best international show of 2017.[8] In 2018, the show won 11 Israeli TV Academy Awards, including best TV drama, best actor for Raz, and best screenplay, casting, cinematography, recording, and special effects.[9]

In 2018, Raz played a Magdala community leader in the film Mary Magdalene, written by Helen Edmundson.[10] The same year, he appeared in Operation Finale, playing Isser Harel, the Director of Israel’s intelligence agency, the Mossad.[4]

Personal life

Raz is married to actress Meital Barda, and they have three children. They live in Ramat HaSharon, a suburb north of Tel Aviv.[3][11]

Filmography

Film
Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000	Delta Force One: The Lost Patrol	Cave Guard
2005	Muchrachim Lehiyot Same'ach	Shimi
2008	Everything Starts at the Sea	Officer
2008	Eli & Ben	Undercover policeman
2010	Mabul	Rafi
2011	Policeman
2012	Haolam Mats'hik	Barak
2014	The Kindergarten Teacher	Nira's husband
2018	Mary Magdalene	Magdala Community Leader
2018	Operation Finale	Isser Harel
2018	Hollywood Salutes Israel	Himself
2019	6 Underground	Rovach Alimov
2020	Dena Gildens Life	Levi Cohan
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
2011-2012	Prime Minister's Children	Asael	18 episodes
2013	Scarred	Shmulik	16 episodes
2015-present	Fauda	Doron Kavillio	36 episodes
2016-2017	Dumb	Amos	4 episodes

References

1. "'Fauda' co-creator and star, Lior Raz, brings the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to Netflix". CBC Radio. 4 January 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
2. Megan Harrison (24 February 2017). "Q & A: Lior Raz, creator and lead actor of Fauda, appears in Ottawa, Sunday". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
3. "How Do You Make a TV Show Set in the West Bank?", The New Yorker.
4. "Lior Raz Archives", Jewish Journal.
5. "Transcript: Inside Fauda"
6. מבוקש (Wanted) Yehuda Schlesinger, Israel Hayom, March 23, 2017
7. Next season's Fauda to reflect real news, says creator
8. Poniewozik, James; Hale, Mike; Lyons, Margaret (4 December 2017). "The Best TV Shows of 2017". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
9. Stern, Itay (12 March 2018). "Israeli Emmys: 'Fauda' Wins Best TV Drama, 'Shababnikim' Best TV Comedy". Haaretz. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
10. https://news.yahoo.com/amphtml/mary-magdalene-film-review-rooney-175009007.html
11. "Lior Raz On ‘Fauda’s’ Return," Jewish Journal.

External links

• Lior Raz on IMDb