Jonah Hill

Jonah Hill — actor with roots in the Russian Empire

Jonah Hill is an American actor, filmmaker, and comedian who rose to fame through Superbad and became one of Hollywood's most versatile performers, earning Academy Award nominations for Moneyball and The Wolf of Wall Street. He also directed the acclaimed skateboarding drama Mid90s.

Tracing the roots — Russia / Austria

Born Jonah Hill Feldstein in Los Angeles in 1983, his family name Feldstein reflects Eastern European Jewish roots — the family traces to Russia and Austria (Russian Empire borderlands). Growing up in a Jewish household in Los Angeles, Hill's comedy carries the self-deprecating, ambitious outsider energy of that immigrant tradition.

Historical context

Russian Empire · c. 1721–1917

Russia / Austria. At the time, this region lay within the Russian Empire, which spanned from Poland to the Pacific.

Map: Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA)

A career defined by ambition