After unexpectedly winning the Miss Israel crown, actress Gal Gadot, famously known for her role in “Wonder Woman,” was sent to compete in the Miss Universe pageant. However, she did everything in her power to purposely lose points during the competition. In an interview with Vanity Fair in November, she fondly recalled her experience and shared, “Paula Abdul, singer and dancer, was one of the judges for Miss Universe. She asked me a few questions and I tried to respond in a thick local accent, saying ‘I’m sorry, I don’t know English.’ I did everything I could to make sure I didn’t win the crown.”
Gal Gadot participated in the Miss Universe 2004 competition in the United States. In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel in 2016, the Israeli beauty expressed that she did not want to continue being a beauty queen because she did not feel like it suited her. “I’m just not that type of woman,” she explained. When asked about why she competed in the Miss Israel pageant at the age of 18, the 1.78m tall actress revealed that she registered because she knew contestants would be flown to Europe and she wanted to be able to tell her future children and grandchildren that she once competed in a beauty pageant. Despite having an attractive face and a tempting figure, Gal Gadot was not confident in her own beauty. In a throwback Instagram post, she shared a photo of herself being crowned as Miss Israel and admitted that she did not understand why they chose her on that night.
After the beauty pageant, Gal Gadot did not immediately pursue a career in showbiz like her predecessors and instead enlisted in the Israeli Defense Forces where she served as a combat instructor for two years. After completing her military service, Gadot went to university to study Law and International Relations with the goal of becoming a lawyer. Despite trying to avoid the entertainment industry, Gadot’s talent for acting shone through and she was sought after by casting agents and directors. She appeared in several TV shows in Israel before auditioning for the role of Bond girl in Quantum of Solace in 2008, which ultimately went to Olga Kurylenko. Determined to improve her acting skills, Gadot went back to school to study acting and later returned to Hollywood where she landed a role in Fast and Furious 5. Her experience in the military has proven to be an asset in the action genre, which she enjoys.
Gal Gadot gained worldwide recognition for her role as Wonder Woman and was praised for her perfect portrayal of the iconic character. Her career took a significant turn when she was cast as the female superhero in the 2017 movie, Wonder Woman. The film’s massive success, grossing over $800 million, turned Gal Gadot into a star overnight. She was then offered a whopping $10 million for the sequel, a massive increase from the $300,000 she received for the first movie. Additionally, Gal Gadot signed a lucrative deal to play the lead role in the upcoming movie, Cleopatra.
Aside from her successful career, Gal Gadot enjoys a happy married life with her millionaire husband, Yaron Varsano. The couple tied the knot in 2008 and are blessed with two daughters.