ByHANNAH BROWN
Lior Ashkenazi, one of Israel’s biggest stars both at home and abroad, will star in a new Israeli film and a series he appears in has just been sold to a North American platform, according to announcements in Deadline.
Ashkenazi, who has starred in such movies as Walk on Water, Footnote and Big Bad Wolves and most recently was in the television show, Valley of Tears, will play the lead in Moshe Rosenthal’s upcoming film, Karaoke. Ashkenazi will portray a flamboyant former modeling agent who moves in next door to a more conventional couple, played by Sasson Gabai (who starred in The Band’s Visit, both in the film version and on Broadway and will soon be appearing in HBO and Dreamworks’ Oslo) and Rita Shukrun (currently appearing in Line in the Sand).
The film, which is currently shooting, is being produced by Efrat Cohen (The Dive) of Tel Aviv University’s Gaudeamus Productions. Ben Giladi (Pig, American Animals) of Rainmaker Entertainment serves as executive producer. Dominique Welinski’s DW is co-producing. The project is financed by Israel Film Fund and The Steve Tisch Foundation for First Features.

Rosenthal, an alumni of the Steve Tisch School of Film and Television at Tel Aviv University, created the Israeli television series, Confess, about the dating apps/hookup culture, which is being remade on AMC by Julie Delpy and Rosenthal. Karaoke has sparked significant interest from international buyers since it was presented at Independent Filmmaker Project Forum in the US.

In addition, the US streaming service Topic has acquired North American rights to the 2015 Israeli drama series, The Wordmaker, which was broadcast in Israel on Hot, also starring Ashkenazi, for a spring release.

The cast includes the Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated Shira Haas (Unorthodox) and Adir Miller (Traffic Light, The Matchmaker).

Set in the world of Kabbalah studies, the series explores religious zealotry and the blurred lines between dreams and reality. It’s about a doctor who is accused of murdering a colleague who once treated him for sleepwalking. The murder accusation forces him to confront his troubled past as a member of a religious sect led by a charismatic and dangerous figure known as “The Wordmaker.”

The suspense drama was created, written, and directed by Dror Sabo and executive- produced by Lee Yardeni and Aviram Buhris from MY TV. Jennifer Liang, VP of Acquisitions at Topic negotiated the deal with ADD Content Agency. Hadas Mozes, co-founder and head of international at the Israel-based ADD Content Agency, is handling international sales.

Topic’s Original productions include the Sundance 2021 docuseries Philly D.A., Call Center Blues and The Letter Room starring Oscar Isaac.