Elsa Guedj was thrilled when she won best actress for Le Sens Des Choses—French for “the sense of meaning”—at this year’s Series Mania, an acclaimed international television festival in France. “I am very happy!” she said in an interview several weeks after receiving the award. “It’s my very first award. I never won any medals doing sports…or anything, so it’s like I won a cup for a professional sports game or something.”

Her latest role also has nothing to do with an athletic event, but it may be just as popular. “People seem very moved and attached to the series, even non-Jewish people,” she said.  

The quirky dramedy, which is streaming in the United States on HBO Max under the title Refomed, stars Guedj as Léa Schmoll, a newly ordained liberal rabbi valiantly serving the small Jewish community in the picturesque city of Strasbourg in eastern France. Each episode follows the young rabbi as she officiated at major life cycle events—weddings, funerals, bar mitzvahs and circumcision ceremonies—that correspond with thought-provoking moments in her personal life and her relationship with her father, a committed atheist. Along the way, Léa wrangles with the different religious and personal needs of the local Jewish community, turning to the local Orthodox rabbi, her longtime mentor, for advice.

The charming series has received accolades and audiences for its witty dialogue, its insider look at French Jewish culture and its ability to pair sitcom hijinks with philosophical moments and rich depictions of Jewish tradition and practice. Guedj, who is Jewish but does not speak Hebrew, worked with a coach—Jewish educator Faustine Sigal—who guided her in performing Jewish rituals and pronouncing prayers. The two even studied Jewish texts together in what Guedj described as “accelerated rabbinical training.”

The series draws inspiration from the life of French rabbi and public intellectual Delphine Horvilleur and her best-selling book Living With Our Dead: On Loss and Consolation, published in English in 2024. The book’s 11 poignant essays are mostly framed around the eulogies and funeral ceremonies she has officiated—from friends and congregants to well-known figures such as politician and Holocaust survivor Simone Weil—and blend personal anecdotes with biblical and rabbinic texts.

While women in the United States have increasingly assumed leadership roles within liberal Jewish movements, in France, she remains one of only a small number of female rabbis. The country’s nearly 500,000 Jews are predominantly affiliated with traditional or Orthodox congregations.

Horvilleur co-leads the Liberal Jewish Movement of France, which is a cultural and religious association affiliated with the World Union for Progressive Judaism. She has been an outspoken advocate for dialogue not only within the broader Jewish community but particularly between French Jewry and the country’s sizable Muslim population of around six million. In an interview with the Times of Israel, Horvilleur noted the importance of building bridges between Jews and the rest of the world and her hope that the new series also serve as a “bridge and gate” into Jewish life.

In Reformed, Léa faces challenges to her Jewish knowledge and authority—much like Horvilleur has said she did at the start of her career—and Guedj skillfully conveys those inner doubts and determination to teach and support others.

In her conversation with Hadassah Magazine, Guedj discussed what it is like to portray a young rabbi on television and how she connected with her character’s real-life inspiration. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Female rabbis are unusual in France. What was the reaction to your role in your native country?

I noticed while preparing the series that a lot of people would tell me, “A woman rabbi, does that exist in real life?” So it’s still not that well known. But there are a lot more young female rabbis now in the path of Delphine who have a very intellectual, philosophical approach to Judaism and very interesting views.

How similar is Reformed to Horvilleur’s book?

It is a very loose adaptation. Most of the stories in the book disappeared in the series. In the end, it’s more the spirit and relationship to the texts of Delphine that remains. Also, how she relates to doubt and how doubting was her key to finding solutions.

Reformed writers Noé Debré and Benjamin Charbit talked with her a lot while writing the series, but most of the stories told in the series are invented or come from other people’s experiences. It’s not aimed to be a biopic, and Léa evolves in a world where Delphine already exists as her own character. So the whole setup is already very different from when Delphine started.

Were you familiar with Horvilleur before working on the series?

I read one of her essays, and I even had a quick fangirl phase a few years ago. I was amazed by her smartness and how she would use philosophy from Judaism to speak about life in general and address a wider community of citizens not necessarily Jewish.

Were there challenges for you in playing Léa?

It was not always easy because she’s very tentative and not very definite. She is also very receptive to others’ opinions and plagued by doubt, so it was not something I could work on in a very proactive way. I had to let go a lot and not control what I was doing.

Tell us about Léa’s relationship with her father (played by Éric Elmosnino), an atheist who doesn’t understand her desire to become a rabbi.

Well, I love this relationship! It’s full of conflicts and at the same time functional. They are so similar and close that deep inside, it’s unbearable for them not to agree about something, or that their life path could take them away from each other. And I love how Eric plays this grumpy, insupportable character and we still love him!

How did your own parents react to the series?

They were very happy. My dad is really an anti-religious person and he still loved it, so I was very proud of that.

What themes or messages do you think will resonate with American viewers?

I hope the series gives a very warm message to people about the uncertainty and imperfection of life and how to navigate it the best we can. Also, when it comes to families, how hard it is to be close but still invent a life of your own.

If the series is renewed for a second season, what are you hoping to explore next?

I am very curious to know how Léa is going to evolve. The first season was very much about doubting herself and still trying to go on. I wonder how she is going to be, now that she has a little experience and more confidence.

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Susan L. Hornik is a veteran entertainment and lifestyle journalist living in California.