Here's another way to get a coveted European passport: direct a successful film that compliments one of the EU countries. That's exactly what Jesse Eisenberg did, the American-Jewish filmmaker behind the moving comedy-drama "A Real Pain." In the film, Kieran Culkin and Eisenberg, who won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar this week for his role, play two Jewish cousins who embark on a journey in Poland after their grandmother's death, and connect with their roots.
Eisenberg (41), who wrote the screenplay for "A Real Pain" and is of Polish descent, based the plot on his coming-of-age period and his family's history during the Holocaust. Last year he applied for Polish citizenship, and now – and we hope it's not just because his film won an Oscar – his application has been approved. In a ceremony held on Tuesday in New York, Eisenberg was granted the citizenship he so desired by none other than the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda.
"It's a once-in-a-lifetime honor and something I've wanted very much for two decades," Jesse said in his speech upon receiving citizenship and added: "When we filmed the movie in Poland, I walked the streets and started to feel a bit more at ease in the country. I realized that my family lived in this place longer than we've lived in New York. Of course, it ended in tragedy, but in addition to that historical tragedy, there's also the tragedy that my family no longer felt connected to Poland."
"It made me very sad and clarified for me that I really want to try to connect with it more. I hope that this ceremony and this great honor tonight is a first step for me, on behalf of my family, to reconnect with this beautiful country," Eisenberg concluded.
Later this year we'll see Eisenberg on the big screen once again, in the thriller sequel "Now You See Me 3" in which he'll star alongside Morgan Freeman, Daniel Radcliffe, Woody Harrelson, and others – nearly a decade after he last collaborated with this impressive cast.
