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''Prisoners of War'' (original title in ) is an
Israeli television Television in Israel refers to television broadcasting services in the State of Israel, inaugurated on March 24, 1966. Initially, there was one state-owned channel, operated jointly by the Israel Broadcasting Authority and the Israeli Educational ...
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
series made by Keshet and originally aired on
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
's Channel 2 from March to May 2010. A second season aired in Israel from October to December 2012. The series was created by Israeli director, screenwriter and producer Gideon Raff. In 2010 it won the Israeli Academy Award for Television for Best Drama Series. In 2013, Raff stated that a third season was planned, but in 2015 stated that a third season did not look likely. The programme was acquired by
20th Century Fox Television 20th Television (formerly 20th Century Fox Television, 20th Century-Fox Television, and TCF Television Productions, Inc.) is an American television production company that is a division of Disney Television Studios, part of The Walt Disney Compa ...
before it aired in Israel, and was adapted into the eight seasons and 96 episodes of the series ''
Homeland A homeland is a place where a cultural, national, or racial identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethni ...
'' for
Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
in the United States from 2011 to 2020. In India it was officially adapted as the 110 episode television series '' P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke'' by
Nikhil Advani Nikhil Suresh Advani (born 28 April 1971) is an Indian film and television director, writer and producer who works in Hindi cinema. He along with his sister, Monisha Advani and Madhu Bhojwani, co-founded the entertainment company Emmay Enterta ...
in 2016 and 2017 with Raff consulting for the series. In Russia it was adapted into the TV series '' Rodina'' in 2015.


Plot

The series, set in 2008, depicts three Israeli soldiers who were captured 17 years previously while on a secret mission with their unit in
Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
.


Season 1

The story begins with the soldiers' return home after years of negotiations for their freedom. Nimrode Klein and Uri Zach return alive, along with the remains of Amiel Ben-Horin. The series explores the reintegration of Nimrode and Uri into a society which has made them national icons, and into an interrupted family life, while working through the trauma of having been held captive and tortured. They must deal with partners who waited or moved on, children who have grown up without them, and parents who have died. They also have to undergo psychiatric evaluations and military debriefings. When a military psychiatrist finds discrepancies in their stories, an investigation is launched to discover what they are hiding.


Season 2

After flashbacks to events at a school in
Metula Metula ( he, מְטֻלָּה) is a town in the Northern District of Israel. Metula is located next to the northern border with Lebanon. In it had a population of . Metula is the northernmost town in Israel. History Bronze and Iron Age Metu ...
in 1990, and to the period shortly after Nimrode and Uri's release, the second season rejoins the story a few days after the events at the end of the first season. Initially disagreeing on what to do with their discovery that Amiel may still be alive, Nimrode and Uri take the information to Haim and Iris, who start to pursue their own (unofficial) investigation into what happened to Amiel—with unanticipated consequences. Alongside this, the series continues to follow Nimrode and Uri (and the soldiers' families) as they pick up the pieces of their lives post-release. It also depicts Amiel for the first time as a living character—rather than in the visions experienced by Amiel's younger sister, Yael—and follows his new life as Yusuf, a Muslim, in Syria.


Cast and characters


Season 1

* as Nimrode Klein, a prisoner of war, and a brave, witty and intelligent man. He has difficulty readjusting to life with his wife and two children. **
Yael Abecassis Yael Abecassis ( he, יעל אבקסיס; born 19 July 1967) is an Israeli actress and model. Biography Yael Abecassis was born in Ashkelon, Israel, to parents of Moroccan Jewish descent. Abecassis married Israeli actor Lior Miller in 1996 an ...
as Talia Klein, Nimrode's wife. She campaigned tirelessly for her husband's release. Since his return, she has trouble relating to him, and she finds that her life no longer has a clear purpose. ** Yael Eitan as Dana, Nimrode's rebellious daughter, who was two years old when her father was captured. ** as Hatzav, Nimrode's teenage son, who was born after his father was taken captive. *
Ishai Golan Ishai Golan ( he, ישי גולן) is an Israeli film and television actor. Early life He was born in Ramat Gan, Israel. Career Golan attended Telma Yalin Arts High School in Givatayim. In 1990, he got his first cinematic role at the age of 17 ...
as Uri Zach, a shy and timid prisoner of war. He is very close to Nimrode. During Uri's captivity, his fiancée married his brother, and they had a son. **
Mili Avital Mili Avital is an Israeli actress. She built an international career, starting in her native Israel, starring on stage, film and television. She won the Israeli Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1991, moved to New York in 1993 to stu ...
as Nurit Halevi-Zach, Uri's former fiancée. After mourning Uri's capture and becoming convinced that he was dead, she eventually grew close to and married his brother Yaki. She feels intense guilt after Uri's return. ** as Yaakov "Yaki" Zach, Uri's brother and Nurit's husband. He is concerned about the effect Uri's return might have on his marriage. ** as Asaf, son of Yaki and Nurit. **
Shmuel Shilo Shmuel Shilo or Shmulik Shiloh ( he, שמואל שילה; 1 December 1929 – 4 October 2011) was an Israeli actor, director and producer, born in the Second Polish Republic, and best remembered for his role on the Israeli production of Rechov ...
as Joseph "Yoske" Zach, Uri and Yaki's elderly father and a widower. *
Assi Cohen Assi Cohen ( he, אסי כהן; born October 10, 1974) is an Israeli comedian and actor. He is best known for his appearances in the feature film '' Colombian Love'' (alongside Mili Avital), as well as for television performances in ''Love Hurts' ...
as Amiel Ben-Horin, a prisoner of war believed to have been killed during his captivity under mysterious circumstances. **
Adi Ezroni Adi Ezroni ( he, עדי עזרוני; born November 16, 1978) is an Israeli actress, model, producer, and TV host. Media career She was born in Israel to a Jewish family. She served as a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces. Subsequently, Ezroni ...
as Yael Ben-Horin, Amiel's younger sister. She finds it impossible to deal with his death, and she begins to see him in visions. * as Ilan Feldman, an
IDF IDF or idf may refer to: Defence forces * Irish Defence Forces * Israel Defense Forces *Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006 * Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917 Organizations * Israeli Diving Federation * Interac ...
liaison to the families of killed, captured and injured soldiers. * as Haim Cohen, an IDF psychiatrist. He leads the investigation of Nimrode and Uri, convinced that they are hiding something. *
Sendi Bar Sendi Bar (sometimes Sandy Bar; he, סנדי בר; born April 5, 1976) is an Israeli actress and model. Sendi Baranes () was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, to a Sephardic Jewish family. Her father is a Libyan-born Jew, whereas her mother is Israe ...
as Iris, an IDF operative working with Haim. *
Aki Avni Yitzhak "Aki" Avni ( he, אקי אבני; born ), is an Israeli actor, entertainer and television host. He appeared in the movie '' Free Zone'' with Natalie Portman. He also played the character Mohsen in the second season of the television series ...
as Ofer, owner of an advertising agency and a friend of Nimrode who served with him in the IDF. * as Dr Shmuel Ostrovsky, Dana's therapist. * as Ehud, son of Dr Ostrovsky. * as Jamal Agrabiya, leader of the cell that captured and imprisoned Nimrode, Uri and Amiel. *
Abdallah El Akal Abdallah El Akal (, he, עבדאללה אל-עקל; born June 13, 1998) is an Arab-Israeli actor, known for his lead role as Fahed in '' Zaytoun'', co-starring alongside American actor Stephen Dorff. El Akal was born in Tel Aviv Tel Aviv- ...
as young Ismail, son of Jamal. * Said Dasuki as teenage Ismail.


Season 2 (additional characters)

* Hadar Ratzon-Rotem as Leila, wife of Yusuf (Amiel). *
Makram Khoury Makram Jamil Khoury (Arabic:, مكرم يعقوب خوري}, he, מכרם חורי) is an Arab-Israeli actor, born 30 May 1945 in Jerusalem. He was the youngest artist and the first Arab to win the Israel Prize, the highest civic honor in Isra ...
as Sheikh Qasab, father of Leila, and founder of the organisation responsible for the kidnapping of Nimrode, Uri and Amiel. * Yousef Sweid as Abdullah bin Rashid, serving a prison sentence in Israel for a terrorist attack but released as part of the prisoner exchange that freed Nimrode and Uri. *
Yonatan Uziel Yonatan Uziel ( he, יונתן עוזיאל; born March 26, 1975) is an Israeli actor and model best known for appearing in '' Prisoners of War'' and ''Hostages''. Early life and education Uziel was born in Jerusalem and grew up in Tel Aviv. Hi ...
as Yinon "Noni" Meiri, whose father was murdered by Abdullah when Noni was a child. * as Dr Ze'ev Kaplan, an IDF psychologist. * as Atar Shorer, a former
Mossad Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national intelligence agency ...
chief who was killed in an accident around the time of Nimrode and Uri's release. * Boaz Konforty as Oren, a friend of Nimrode and a member of Nimrode and Uri's reserve unit.


Production

Filming commenced on the first season of ''Hatufim'' in August 2009. First season episodes had a budget of $200,000 each. The second season of ''Hatufim'' was filmed between May and October 2011. It was originally due to be broadcast in Israel from December 2011 but the premiere was put back to June 2012 and then October 2012 due to the state of the local advertising market. Though Gideon Raff had stated, in 2013, that he intended to write a third season of ''Hatufim'', but in 2015 it was announced that the plans for season three had been frozen, with Raff stating that his ongoing work with other projects meant that "There's no third season in sight".


Reception

At the time of broadcast, the first season of ''Hatufim'' was Israel's highest-rated TV drama of all time. It also achieved critical acclaim and was awarded Best Drama Series of 2010 by the
Israeli Academy of Film and Television Israeli Academy of Film and Television is a non-profit organization working in the fields of film and television in Israel. History The Israeli Academy of Film and Television, founded in 1990, is the Israeli equivalent of the US-based Academy o ...
. For their work on the show, Gideon Raff won Best Directing for a Drama Series, Ishai Golan won Best Actor in a Drama Series, and Yael Abecassis won Best Actress in a Drama Series. The series was not without controversy. It was criticized by family members of soldiers held prisoner, including Miriam Groff, mother of one of the men released in the
Jibril Agreement The Jibril Agreement ( ar, اتفاقية جبريل, Ittifāqīyat Jibrīl) or "Jibril Deal" ( he, עסקת ג'יבריל, Iskat Jibril) was a prisoner exchange deal which took place on May 21, 1985 between the Israeli government, then headed by Sh ...
. She suggested that the series might encourage the kidnapping of soldiers. Viewing figures for the second season of ''Hatufim'' were even higher than for the first, with an average audience share of 40% (rising to 47.9% for the final episode) making it the highest-rated drama in Israel in 2012. Online viewing reached 3 million. At the 2013
Seoul International Drama Awards Seoul International Drama Awards (), simply known as SDA, is an annual award ceremony based in Seoul, South Korea which honors excellence in television drama productions worldwide. Winners Grand prize (''Daesang'') Program Winners are given ...
, ''Hatufim'' (season 2) was awarded the festival's Grand Prize, out of a total of 225 entries from 48 countries. Other series nominated included ''
Homeland A homeland is a place where a cultural, national, or racial identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethni ...
'' (season 2) and ''
House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
'' (season 8). At the 2013 Israeli Academy Television Awards, season 2 of ''Hatufim'' was nominated in 9 categories, including (for Drama Series) Best Series, Best Directing (Gideon Raff), Best Screenplay (Gideon Raff) and Best Actor (Assi Cohen). In December 2009, three months before ''Hatufim'' premiered in Israel, it was reported that the rights to develop an American version of the series had been sold to
20th Century Fox Television 20th Television (formerly 20th Century Fox Television, 20th Century-Fox Television, and TCF Television Productions, Inc.) is an American television production company that is a division of Disney Television Studios, part of The Walt Disney Compa ...
. It was sold on the strength of the script alone, before the series had even begun shooting. The result was the series ''Homeland'', developed in cooperation with Raff and broadcast on cable channel
Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
. Following on from the success of ''Hatufim'' in Israel, and the worldwide success of ''Homeland'', Keshet has sold the original series (in Hebrew with subtitles) in a number of territories internationally, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, the United States and several European countries. The rights to produce local versions of the series have been sold in Russia (due to start filming in March 2014),
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
and
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
and
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
. A version with
dubbing Dubbing (re-recording and mixing) is a post-production process used in filmmaking and video production, often in concert with sound design, in which additional or supplementary recordings are lip-synced and "mixed" with original production sou ...
of the Hebrew dialogue, but undertitles for the Arabic dialogue, has been produced for the German market and broadcast by
ARTE Arte (; (), sometimes stylized in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European public service channel dedicated to culture. It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE, plus ...
. Author
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
included ''Hatufim'' (season 1) at number 8 in his top 10 TV shows of 2012. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' placed ''Hatufim'' (season 2) at number 2 in its top 12 TV shows of 2013, and in 2020 ranked it as the best show of the 2010s.


Episodes


Season 1 (2010)


Season 2 (2012)


Songs


Broadcast

''Hatufim'' in its original format (in Hebrew with subtitles) has been sold internationally for broadcast on network and pay television, for download via VOD, and for DVD release.


Season 1

The first season (10 episodes) aired on Channel 2 in Israel from 6 March to 22 May 2010. In the UK it was shown on
Sky Arts Sky Arts (originally launched as Artsworld) is a British free-to-air television channel offering 24 hours a day of programmes dedicated to highbrow arts, including theatrical performances, movies, documentaries and music (such as opera perfor ...
from 10 May to 12 July 2012. It was
Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
's first foreign language exclusive series in the United States, with episodes released weekly from 14 July to 15 September 2012. In Australia it was broadcast from 19 January to 23 March 2013 on SBS. In Canada it was aired on Super Channel, two episodes at a time, from 10 July to 7 August 2013.


Season 2

The second season (14 episodes) aired in Israel from 15 October to 25 December 2012. The majority of episodes were released a week in advance for online viewing (rental service) via
mako , better known by the mononym name Mako (sometimes stylised MAKO), is a Japanese voice actress, singer and a member of the band Bon-Bon Blanco, in which her prominent role is as the maraca player. She has also performed in a Japanese television d ...
VOD. In the United States, episodes were released weekly from 28 May to 20 August 2013 on Hulu. In Canada, season 2 was shown on Super Channel immediately after the end of season 1, from 14 August to 25 September 2013 (two episodes at a time). In Australia it was broadcast on SBS from 2 October 2013 to 15 January 2014.No episodes broadcast on 25 December 2013 or 1 January 2014. Having initially said that it had no plans to show Season 2, Sky Arts aired it in the UK from 22 April to 22 July 2014.


DVD releases


References


External links


Official website (Season 1)
in Hebrew
Official website (Season 2)
in Hebrew *
Season 1 episodes
on
mako , better known by the mononym name Mako (sometimes stylised MAKO), is a Japanese voice actress, singer and a member of the band Bon-Bon Blanco, in which her prominent role is as the maraca player. She has also performed in a Japanese television d ...
VOD in Hebrew with Hebrew subtitles
Season 2 episodes
on
mako , better known by the mononym name Mako (sometimes stylised MAKO), is a Japanese voice actress, singer and a member of the band Bon-Bon Blanco, in which her prominent role is as the maraca player. She has also performed in a Japanese television d ...
VOD in Hebrew with Hebrew subtitles {{Homeland Homeland (TV series) 2010 Israeli television series debuts 2012 Israeli television series endings Israeli drama television series Prisoners of war in popular culture Shin Bet in fiction Channel 2 (Israeli TV channel) original programming Television series created by Gideon Raff Television shows set in Israel