Rona-Lee Shimon

Rona-Lee Shimon is an Israeli actress, dancer, and model who is widely recognized for her starring role in the television series Fauda. In addition to her acting work, she has served as a television judge on the Israeli reality competition series Rokdim Im Kokhavim, which is the national adaptation of Dancing with the Stars.

Born in Ramat Gan, Israel, Shimon comes from an Ashkenazi-Jewish and Mizrahi-Jewish background with Polish, Iraqi, and Persian heritage. She began training in ballet at three years old and joined the Bat Dor dance company at twelve. Following high school, she earned a full scholarship to study at the Royal Ballet Academy in Amsterdam before returning home to work as a professional dancer. She raised her family alongside a sister who is an actress and a brother who later assisted her with tactical preparation for screen roles.

Shimon first gained public notice in 2005 as a competitor on Born to Dance, the Israeli version of So You Think You Can Dance. She made her television acting debut the following year with a guest appearance on the musical soap opera Our Song. To further develop her craft, she completed three years of drama school and subsequently starred in several prominent theatrical productions, appearing in stage musicals such as Cabaret, Chicago, and West Side Story, in which she portrayed Anita.

Her major breakthrough came with her casting in the action-thriller series Fauda. Portraying Nurit, the sole female operative within an otherwise male counter-terrorism squad, Shimon performed her own stunts. Her preparation for the physical demands of the character involved extensive training in Krav Maga, kickboxing, and weapons handling.

In addition to her work on Israeli television, Shimon has expanded into international screen projects. In 2020, she appeared as Mika in the series Messiah. Later, in 2025, she portrayed a Mossad agent named Eliza in the series The Terminal List: Dark Wolf.