Gal Gadot tells joke in Hebrew on American late night show

Only Israelis or Hebrew speakers got the punchline, but the Hollywood star earned a lot of points in her appearance

Gal Gadot, the Israeli actress famous for her role as Wonder Woman, could also be a comedian.

During her appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden on Tuesday, Gadot was put through a series of challenges by the host with the audience voting “Gal Ga-NO” or “Gal Ga-YES.”

For Israelis, the second challenge was nothing short of hysterical – and a state secret to boot – when Corden asked her to tell a joke in Hebrew.

The mission? To get Hagar Ben Ari, an Israeli musician in the late-night show band, to laugh while everyone else in the audience had no clue what was being said.

Before she told the joke, Gadot addressed the guitarist in Hebrew.

“Listen, no matter what, you have to laugh really hard, okay?” she said.

“Look she’s laughing already and I didn’t even start the joke!” Gadot told the guests.

Gadot then tells the joke in Hebrew: “A baby is like instant coffee, do you know why? It’s easy to make it and it keeps you up all night.”

It was a “Gal Ga-YES.” Ben Ari laughed and confirmed, “It’s really funny.”

No stranger to the late-night show circuit, Gadot has frequently traded barbs with Jimmy Fallon. On one show, they both introduced the other to foods native to their homelands including a sufganiya (jelly doughnut) and gefilte fish from Gadot and eggnog, Ho Hos and Taco Bell from Fallon.

While Gadot has said she is “not an ambassador” for the Jewish state, her wit and her ease probably score points for Israel, nevertheless.

“It is important for me to show the Israel that I know the developed and cultural and democratic Israel with the most amazing people in the world, with the most delicious food, with the most beautiful beaches,” she once said. “It is important for me to show it and every moment I can whether it’s eating falafel or chocolate with crackers.”

Gadot’s latest film, “Red Notice,” premieres on Nov. 12 on Netflix. She is also slated to star in the title role in an upcoming remake of “Cleopatra.”

Nicole Jansezian