Jesse Eisenberg’s Receives Polish Citizenship, Marking Return to His Heritage

Jesse Eisenberg, the American actor and filmmaker, has been granted Polish citizenship by Polish President Andrzej Duda on March 5. The decision follows his work on A Real Pain, a film that explores the history of Poland’s Jewish population during World War II.

According to the BBC, Eisenberg wrote, directed, and starred in the film, which follows two American cousins traveling to Poland to honor their grandmother, a Holocaust survivor. The character was based on Eisenberg’s great aunt, who fled Poland before the war.

Speaking at the citizenship ceremony, Eisenberg reflected on his family’s history in the country.

“While we were filming this movie in Poland, and I was walking the streets and starting to get a little more comfortable in the country, something so obvious occurred to me, which is that my family had lived in this place for far longer than we lived in New York,” he said. “And of course, the history ended so tragically.”

Eisenberg noted that his family’s loss of connection to Poland had strengthened his desire to reclaim that heritage.

“In addition to that tragedy of history is also the tragedy that my family didn’t feel any connection any more to Poland, and that saddened me and confirmed for me that I really wanted to try to reconnect as much as possible,” he said. “And I really hope that tonight in this ceremony and this amazing honour is the first step of me, and on behalf of my family, reconnecting to this beautiful country.”

Eisenberg’s decision to explore his heritage was partly influenced by the death of his great aunt Doris, who passed away in 2019 at the age of 106. She fled Poland for the United States in 1938, while other members of the family who remained were killed during the Holocaust.

Andrzej Duda said he welcomed the actor’s decision to reclaim his ancestral ties.

“I am delighted that people from across the ocean acknowledge their heritage, recognise that their ancestors hail from the Republic [of Poland] and seek to forge a connection with our country,” Duda said.

Eisenberg was nominated for an Academy Award for writing A Real Pain, while his co-star Kieran Culkin won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

In corresponding news, Russia, while promoting xenophobia and antisemitism domestically, accuses neighboring countries, including Ukraine, of “reviving Nazism.”