Overview of Gal Gadot on Armchair Expert
In this episode of Armchair Expert, Dax Shepard and Monica Padman talk with Gal Gadot about her unusual path from an athletic childhood in Israel to Miss Israel, military service, modeling, Fast & Furious, and eventually Wonder Woman. The conversation ranges widely—from astrology and AI-generated personality descriptions to women’s health, pregnancy complications, peptides, and aging as an athlete. A major focus is Gadot’s new film, The Runner, a high-intensity thriller built almost entirely around nonstop running.
Key Topics Discussed
Gal Gadot’s early life and background
- Grew up in the suburbs of Tel Aviv/Givatayim-area Israel in a very active household.
- Her mother encouraged sports and movement; Gadot played tennis, volleyball, ballet, hip hop, and cheerleading.
- Her father is an engineer, and Gadot describes him as highly logical, precise, and emotionally more open later in life.
Pageants, modeling, and the military
- She originally didn’t pursue modeling or pageants seriously, but her mother and a friend submitted her to Miss Israel.
- She won Miss Israel 2004, then competed in Miss Universe in Ecuador.
- After a short modeling stint in Milan, she completed mandatory military service in Israel, where she became a trainer and learned Krav Maga.
- Gadot and Dax discuss how Krav Maga is designed around real-world self-defense, using whatever is available in the environment.
Breaking into acting
- Her first big acting break came through Quantum of Solace and then Fast & Furious.
- A memorable anecdote: a casting director later pushed her toward Fast & Furious after Gadot had kindly shared a very expensive La Mer lip balm during an earlier audition.
- She explains that the shift into acting felt uncertain because it wasn’t a “concrete” career like athletics or medicine/law.
Fast & Furious and Wonder Woman
- She appeared in Fast & Furious 4, 5, and 6, and was killed off in 7.
- She later auditioned for what was initially a secret role in Batman v Superman, which became Wonder Woman.
- Gadot describes the role as physically demanding and emotionally meaningful because it represented a powerful female archetype.
- Wonder Woman was a huge success, but she says the accomplishment didn’t fully “land” in the moment because she was dealing with postpartum recovery and a back injury.
Health, Pregnancy, and Women’s Medicine
Her stroke during pregnancy
- Gadot shares a frightening personal story: during pregnancy she suffered cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), a rare type of stroke caused by clots in veins in the brain.
- She describes severe headaches, being dismissed at first, and eventually getting an MRI that revealed how serious the situation was.
- She underwent a thrombectomy after delivery and was told she had likely been close to coma.
Broader discussion on women’s health
- Gadot and Dax discuss how medicine has historically been under-researched in women, especially because menstrual cycles were treated as a “complication.”
- They talk about:
- Ambien being metabolized differently in women
- Hormone therapy
- Peptides and the importance of medical supervision
- Gadot is open to the idea of treatment, but emphasizes doing it safely, with doctors, and with bloodwork monitoring.
The Runner
What the movie is about
- Gadot stars as a lawyer and runner whose son is abducted, forcing her into a nonstop race across London.
- The film is described as high-octane and extremely physical—essentially a movie where she runs for nearly the whole runtime.
- She says the script was so good she read it in one sitting, but initially thought she might not be able to do it physically.
How the film came together
- The project came to her after her medical scare, and the director, Kevin Macdonald, had also experienced a similar pregnancy-related brain clot in his family.
- The studio agreed to delay production so she could recover and train.
- She worked with elite running coaches for months and filmed while dealing with injuries, including stress fractures and periods on crutches.
Gadot’s perspective on the challenge
- She frames the role as a kind of gift: a chance to prove to herself what she could do physically.
- She says the process was exhausting but ultimately rewarding because she came away with a concrete accomplishment.
Notable Insights
On astrology and AI
- The conversation includes a long, playful exchange about astrology and asking ChatGPT to describe them in one word.
- Gadot says astrology feels like a “nice spice” rather than something she lives by.
- Dax notes that AI calling people “curious” may simply reflect how much they interrogate the system.
On ego and success
- Gadot and Dax agree that success can be overwhelming in the moment and sometimes only becomes clear in retrospect.
- She argues that ego isn’t purely bad—it can be a force that helps people push past limits, as long as it’s kept in check.
On parenthood and identity
- Gadot talks about being a mother of four daughters and how parenting changes over time.
- Dax connects this to the idea that men and women often become more emotionally open later in life.
Fun Behind-the-Scenes Moments
- Gadot’s first-ever podcast appearance on Armchair Expert is framed as a big deal.
- They compare notes on:
- Tom Cruise’s famous coconut cake
- Beverly Hills restaurant meals
- A robot delivery service named Coco
- The episode also includes the show’s usual sponsor reads and post-interview banter, which are not central to the interview itself.
Main Takeaways
- Gal Gadot’s career path was shaped by a mix of athletic discipline, chance, and persistence.
- Her life story includes major transitions: pageant winner → soldier → model → actor → global star.
- She’s candid about the physical and emotional cost of success, especially around pregnancy, injury, and postpartum work.
- The Runner reflects both her athletic identity and her willingness to take on roles that demand real physical commitment.
- The episode also doubles as a thoughtful conversation about women’s health, medical bias, and the importance of patient advocacy.