Seth Rogen has been one of the most popular and successful faces in Hollywood comedy for more than a decade. Where is his family from and what is his ethnicity?
Seth Rogen was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. His father, Mark, was American, while his mother, Sandy, was American. Both are Jewish and met at a kibbutz in Israel. Rogen has Russian ancestry on his mother’s side, likely making him Ashkenazi Jewish.
For more on Seth Rogen’s family and his early life, read on.
Rogen’s Family
Rogen was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on April 15, 1982. His mother, Sandy, was a Canadian social worker and his father, Mark, was an American who worked for several nonprofit organizations.
Mark has also held an important role in the Workers Circle, a Jewish social justice organization. Seth’s parents met at a kibbutz in Israel and have been together ever since.
Rogen has described his parents as “radical Jewish socialists”, but also stressed that his parents would probably be considered more radical in the US than in Canada. In his words, socialism is not a dirty word in Canada.
Sandy Rogen’s father was Kelly Belogus, whose parents Paul and Freda were Russian Jewish people who immigrated to Canada. This makes Rogen at least a quarter Russian and is the clearest indication we can find of his ethnic ancestry.
As both of Rogen’s parents are Jewish, as well as his maternal grandparents, we can assume that he has Ashkenazi blood, at least on his mother’s side.
Rogen takes pride in being Jewish, even if he isn’t particularly religious in his adult life. Rather than attempting to be “cool” in the way that his predecessors, such as Dustin Hoffman and James Caan, were, Rogen prefers to just be himself.
He embraces his personality, partly shaped by his years in a Jewish elementary school and summer camps, and frizzy hair, owning them rather than trying to hide them away.
He is also keen to stress that he doesn’t consider his work to be “Jewish humor” in a stereotypical sense, rather it’s just personal comedy from somebody who was given a heavily Jewish education.
He has further delved into his Jewish ancestry recently, learning as much Yiddish as possible for his role in “An American Pickle”, set to release in 2020 on HBO Max.
He put his newfound knowledge to the test when he attended a Workers Circle gathering, sprinkling some of his Yiddish vernacular into a speech when he and his father accepted a Generation to Generation Activism award.
Sandy and Mark
Seth’s parents, particularly Sandy, have become popular figures due to their public appearances at Seth’s charity events and their activity on social media. Sandy went viral when she tweeted a comparison of sex and yoga, eliciting a dismayed response from her son.
Sandy also played a major role in helping Seth begin his career as a comic. When he first began performing comedy in Vancouver clubs at just 13 years old, Sandy acted as his driver.
By the time Rogen was old enough to drive himself, he was already placing highly in amateur comedy competitions. The headstart Sandy provided played a large role in cultivating his talent as a comedian.
The couple have also addressed the fact that Seth and his wife, Lauren, do not yet have children. They have accepted that, for now, Seth is content with his pet dog, Zelda, and they aren’t pressuring him. This is also helped by the fact that Seth’s sister, Danya, has already given them grandchildren.
While we don’t have enough information to paint a full picture of Seth Rogen’s ethnicity, we know enough to say that his ancestors passed through Russia and that he is probably “ethnically Jewish”.