Michael Aloni: Holocaust miniseries ‘We Were the Lucky Ones’ resonated with me

Michael Aloni, the actor best known for his leading roles in Shtisel and The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem, said in a recent interview that his role in the new miniseries, We Were the Lucky Ones (created by Hulu and available in Israel on Disney+), based on the bestselling book by Georgia Hunter, was especially meaningful for him.

The moving and suspenseful series, which is based on the true story of Hunter’s Polish-Jewish family’s fight for survival during World War II, stars a cast from around the world, including Joey King, Logan Lerman, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, and Sam Woolf, as well a number of Israel’s most acclaimed actors, among them Lior Ashkenazi, Moran Rosenblatt, Hadas Yaron, Amit Rahav, and Lihi Kornowski. 

Aloni plays Selim, a doctor married to Mila, one of the daughters in the family, who is played by Yaron. The series depicts the dispersion of Jews fleeing Nazi persecution throughout Europe and the world. Selim and Mila are torn apart by forces beyond their control, even though they desperately want to be together. It’s a story that feels particularly relevant now, with the rise of global antisemitism following the October 7 massacre by Hamas and the subsequent war in Gaza.

Antisemitism is rearing its ugly head

“I feel blessed and lucky to be part of this show, especially today, where we see antisemitism raising its ugly head. I think this show is a great tool to deliver a message to the world, to remind people...that we must never forget what happened and that this must never repeat itself. It shows what a war like World War II and the Holocaust meant and how the face of evil can be so destructive and so vicious,” Aloni said.

“A great show that is based on a great book, like We Were the Lucky Ones, can draw in so many viewers, who can watch this show and understand just how ugly the human reality can become in a split second and how important it is for us to remain human at a time when hate can blind us.”

The fact that the series was based on a book was helpful when he began working on his character.

“First of all, as an actor, when you prepare for a role, if it’s just a script that a writer or director wrote, and you work from the pages you’ve been given, you have to invent a world that you’re entering for yourself. But when it’s based on a book, it’s much more helpful because you have more resources to turn to you when you need to find your character. And this is such a wonderful book, such a well-written book... Georgia was with us throughout the whole process, and that made it even easier and more accessible as an actor to approach the role. And, of course, the heritage of my family and the heritage of the Jewish people means a lot to me...and it felt like projecting the stories of my family and Georgia’s family combined,” he said.

One example of how he incorporated his own family history into the series was when his character had to sing a lullaby to his baby daughter just before going off to fight in the war. “I don’t know if I’ll ever see her again, and I don’t know if I’ll ever kiss my wife again. And the song that I sing to her is actually a request that I came to Thomas [Kail], the director, with – a song that my mom used to sing to my sister when she was a little girl. My mom was born in Poland, so I took the Polish words and tune...and I was holding my little daughter in my hands...and it was resonating powerfully, the whole history of what happened to Georgia’s family, to my family, and to so many other families – and to the Jewish people. I felt that connection in each and every moment of making the series.”

He recalled filming one very critical scene, which everyone who sees the series will remember afterwards but revealing the details of which would be a spoiler. After the take was over, there was silence. “I didn’t understand why, and then I saw that everyone’s eyes were filled with tears, and this was such an amazing moment.... It was a very emotional scene for the two of us [acting in it] and for everyone who was watching.”

Aloni said he enjoys the energy on international productions like We Were the Lucky Ones.

“I love the fact that this project is like a melting pot of so many international talents – from Finland, from Poland, from Israel, from England, from the States. Bringing this humanity together is something that always moves my heart... I’m just hoping for more projects like We Were the Lucky Ones, you know, projects that are so intense and important and where I get to be around such a group of creative, beautiful people.”

However, he added that he would also be happy to work in Israel: “As long as it’s a well written project, I’ll be there.”

ALONI IS currently starring in the Israeli series Northern Storm on Hot, where he portrays a hi-tech entrepreneur who acquired his skills from the 8200 intelligence unit. He said he has some projects in the works that he cannot yet talk about, but there is one that he could discuss, which is about the terror attack in Buenos Aires on the Jewish Community Center in 1994 – directed by Iran and carried out by Hezbollah – that killed 85 people. “It’s kind of a thriller, and it’s a dramatic story that should be coming up very soon,” he said. The series is an Argentinian-American-Israeli co-production.

Since he plays a doctor in We Were the Lucky Ones and portrayed a physician in his previous project, The Stronghold, a fact-based movie about an outpost during the Yom Kippur War, I asked whether he would play a doctor in the Buenos Aires series too, but he said no. “My mother is happy about me playing doctors... As a nice, Jewish mother, she always wanted a doctor, but she got an actor, so it’s balancing out,” he quipped.