Gal Gadot doesn’t just play Wonder Woman⏤she is Wonder Woman. The Justice League actress is compassionate, powerful, and has taken Hollywood by storm over the course of the last decade, all while possessing the same poise and cunning of the Athenian warrior she embodies on film. And it’s not just her work on the silver screen that deserves praise. The former Miss Israel even served for two years as an Israeli Defense Force combat trainer. Yeah, she’s a grade-A badass.
As successful as she’s been, the Petah Tikva native never seems to get the respect she deserves when it comes to her beautifully alliterative name. No one really knows how to pronounce it correctly⏤which is fine, honestly, since even she admits it can be hard. Not truly Guh-dough, but not quite Gah-dot; it’s hard to pin down how to do the name justice (pun intended). But we might as well try, so let’s give it a shot.
The correct pronunciation is Gal Gah-dote.
Peace of cake, just don’t overpronunce the “t”. Here’s a short video of the part time political activist explaining how to pronounce her name:
Now you can rest easy knowing that you won’t be the sad sap who mispronounces Gadot’s name the next time it comes up at a superhero-themed dinner party. As a bonus, here’s an anecdote you can share: Gadot was not her surname at birth. In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel back in 2016, the actress revealed that her real last name isn’t Gadot, but actually Greenstein!
As captivating as any entertainer in show business, Gadot is the type of woman many look up to. With her calm and collected attitude, she’s even been the subject of parody, all attributed to her larger-than-life persona.
Here’s comedian and Saturday Night Live mainstay Kate McKinnon describing what it’s like working with the Israeli entertainer:
In the end, does it matter whether she goes by Gadot or Greenstein? Hardly. Gal is one of Hollywood’s most captivating actresses and will continue to kick butt whether or not anyone gets her name right.