Who is Ziv Zaifman on ‘The Greatest Showman’? – Biography

Who is Ziv Zaifman?

Ziv Zaifman was born on 7 July 2004, in Clearwater, Florida, USA, and is an actor as well as a singer, best known for his work on the film “The Greatest Showman”. While he didn’t have a role in the film, he provided the singing voice for actor Ellis Rubin, who was portraying a young PT Barnum.

The Riches of Ziv Zaifman

As of early-2020, Ziv Zaifman has a net worth estimated to be over $200,000 earned through a bit of success in the entertainment industry. He’s been involved in a few acting projects, though “The Greatest Showman” remains as his biggest success commercially. As he is still young, time will tell if he will continues in the acting field or pursue another.

Early Life and Career Beginnings

Ziv grew up in Florida, and at a young age demonstrated talent in singing. He loved performing, and aspired to find a career as a film actor, using his talents in singing to help him land roles in musicals or the like.

One of his first acting roles was in an episode of the show “The Blacklist” in 2017; starring James Spader, it follows the story of a criminal who was formerly an officer in the US Navy, and after eluding the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for many years, he gives himself up to become an informant, convincing them that he’s compiled a blacklist of all the most dangerous criminals in the world, and is willing to give up the information in exchange for immunity.

The show has been acclaimed throughout its run, which made it a great first step for Zaifman, though he only had a small role in one episode.

PT Barnum – A History

Zaifman’s next project would be his most career-defining so far, as the singing voice of Ellis Rubin in “The Greatest Showman”. The show is a biographical film, depicting the life of showman Phineas Taylor Barnum or PT Barnum, who founded the Barnum and Bailey Circus, which for its entire run marketed itself as “The Greatest Show on Earth”, hence the name of the film.

Barnum was a small business owner who discovered a desire to pursue a career in entertainment. He first purchased Scudder’s American Museum which he used as a platform to market various hoaxes such as the Fiji Mermaid, actually a monkey sewn into a fish, making it look like the skeleton of a mermaid. These hoaxes were what he would become known for though – in 1850, he partnered with opera singer Jenny Lind for an American tour spanning 150 nights, for which he paid her an unprecedented $1000 a night for her work. While he suffered numerous setbacks during this period, his museum flourished, expanding and gaining the first aquarium in the US.

The Later Career of PT Barnum

While Barnum’s most enduring and celebrated achievement was his circus, his later career was marked with service in the government, as he became a member of the Connecticut Legislature. He was highly inclined to a change in the US Constitution, opposed to practices of slavery, expressing his Christian beliefs that a soul should not be subject to involuntary servitude. He also fought for causes such as street lighting, prostitution laws, liquor limitations, and better water supply to the state, plus establishing the Bridgeport Hospital in 1878.  Most of these achievements were overshadowed by his traveling circus and museum filled with freaks, as the public would call it.

The Success of The Greatest Showman

The film gained a lot of traction since its announcement, gaining high profile acting talents such as Hugh Jackman, Zendaya, and Zac Efron. The film takes inspiration from Barnum’s museum and his career in entertainment, most notably his work with Lind as well as his circus. The film’s production took most of 2017, with its release scheduled for later in the year. The film had a mixed reception from critics, though it did not stop generally positive acclaim for its music, production, and acting performances. Hugh Jackman gained numerous nominations for his work, and the music of the film gained numerous nominations, with the song “This Is Me” winning a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.

While its soundtrack gained a lot of attention, it was also noted that several actors didn’t sing their respective songs. Zendaya, Hugh and Zac performed their songs, while Loren Allred provided the voice for actress Rebecca Ferguson, who portrayed the Swedish Nightingale Jenny Lind. Ziv also sang, and can be heard on the track “A Million Dreams”. The film was successful commercially, becoming the third highest-grossing musical in the US, earning a total of $435 million worldwide, as opposed to its $84 million budget.

Recent Work and Personal Life

Since the success of “The Greatest Showman”, Zaifman has had one other film project, a follow-up from his work in the previous film, cast in the 2018 independent film “To Dust”, which starred Matthew Broderick and Geza Rohrig.

The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, and tells the story of a Jewish man who tries to move forward after losing his wife to cancer. He then finds an unusual partnership with a rabbi and a biology professor.

Following his work there, things have been quiet for Ziv in the last few years. The speculation is that he is continuing his education, and may eventually take more acting opportunities as thery comes. However, there is also a possibility that he may not follow through with his initial acting work, as is the case for several child actors.

Ziv is young and single, not likely focused on finding any long term relationship as he is still focused on education. He’s also just begun in his career in the entertainment industry, which may leave him little in terms of time for a girlfriend. Not a lot of information has been revealed about him, apart from his love for singing and acting.

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