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Taika Waititi, an influential filmmaker known for his exceptional comedic intelligence and directorial skills, has made a significant mark in the film industry over the past two decades.
Born Taika David Cohen on August 16, 1975, in Wellington, New Zealand, Waititi has been open about his upbringing and diverse heritage. Raised in the multicultural surroundings of Aro Valley in Wellington and the village of Raukokore in the Bay of Plenty, he has roots in both Māori and Jewish ancestry.
His father belongs to the Māori people of Te Whānau-ā-Apanui descent, indigenous Polynesians of New Zealand. Taika’s paternal grandfather, also named Taika, is renowned for his service as a soldier in the Māori Battalion during World War II.
Following his parents’ divorce when he was about five years old, Waititi was primarily raised by his mother, Robin Cohen, a schoolteacher. He derives his legal surname from his mother, who has an Ashkenazi Jewish background.
Explaining his heritage, Waititi mentioned in a podcast interview that his maternal grandfather was a Russian Jew from Novozybkov, Russia. His mother’s family represents Russian Jewish, Irish, and other European ethnicities, while his father’s lineage comprises Māori and some French Canadian ancestry.
Waititi identifies as both Māori and Jewish, describing himself as a “Polynesian Jew.” Despite not practicing Judaism in his household, he identifies as an atheist and aligns more with indigenous beliefs.
The film “Jojo Rabbit,” directed and written by Waititi, created substantial controversy due to its sensitive subject matter set in Nazi Germany. The film, based on Christine Leunens’ book “Caging Skies,” received backlash for Waititi’s portrayal of a comical Adolf Hitler, the imaginary friend of a ten-year-old boy in the Hitler Youth Camp.
Waititi revealed that critics would have approached the film differently had they known about his Jewish heritage beforehand. He acknowledged that some Jewish viewers expressed a wish to have been informed about his Jewish background before watching the film.
Despite the criticism, “Jojo Rabbit” marked a significant milestone in Waititi’s career, earning him an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, making him the first Indigenous person to win in this category. The film also won a Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media.
In the production notes of “Jojo Rabbit,” Waititi dedicated the film to his mother, acknowledging her inspiration for the movie. He also reflected on experiencing prejudice while growing up as a Māori Jew, yet he proudly accepts and embraces his Jewish identity.