Elizabeth Banks may not share pictures of her two teenage sons, Felix and Magnus, but she does share their simchas — joyous celebrations. Or at least, she shared her joy this week that her youngest son, Magnus, celebrated his bar mitzvah on Nov. 15.
“What a weekend celebrating with family and friends for Magnus. 13. Bar Mitzvah. My baby,” the filmmaker and actress, known for her roles in “Pitch Perfect” and “The Hunger Games,” shared on Instagram along with a carousel of pictures from the events that included zero pictures of anyone underage — quite a feat.
Banks shared pictures of herself with friends and family, including her husband, Max Handelman, friend Mickey Rapkin (director of “The Anne Frank Gift Shop,”) and his husband actor Jason Butler Harner (most recently in Hulu’s “All’s Fair”), and “Wicked” and “Wicked: For Good” screenwriter Dana Fox. Talk about a cool crowd!
The party included a hot drink adorned with the bar mitzvah logo (Magnus’ name with a palm tree), card magic tricks by Aaron O’Brien and a delightful photo booth. And it also included a religious aspect — it seems that Banks enlisted Hebrew Helpers to help with preparation for the Jewish ceremony. She also seems to have used Mitzvah Sisters, a b-mitzvah and corporate event planning duo — Jewish twin sisters — to help organize the party.
“What an absolute pleasure it was to plan Magnus’ Bar Mitzvah! It was an EPIC night, not soon to be forgotten. Mazel tov, Magnus!” they wrote on Instagram.
The duo later shared pictures from Magnus’ magical night, which took place at the Hollywood Athletic Club and was “Casablanca”-themed. Such an awesome bar mitzvah theme!
Banks was not born Jewish, but her husband Max is Jewish and they raised their kids in a Jewish home. “I never had a mikvah… I did some classes, my kid is about to start his bar mitzvah situation, we’re sticking with it still,” she told Mark Maron in 2022 on his podcast, referring most likely to her oldest son, Felix, who turned 13 last year.
In the same podcasts, she called Max “religious enough,” and said that his affinity for Judaism is cultural. “It’s cultural, it’s his parents, he can’t call his parents and say ‘I’m not going to have a bar mitzvah for our kid,’ never gonna happen, we’re totally in, we do Shabbat, we love Shabbat, light a candle, buy the challah,” she told the Jewish comedian.
Banks had previously opened up about being Jewish in a 2013 episode of the podcast, saying she took an 11-week “You’re A Jew Now” class.
“I’ve been essentially a Jew for like 15 years,” she shared back then. “I haven’t had a Christmas tree in 15 years. My kids go to Jewish preschool, we only celebrate Jewish holidays, I love seder. Frankly, because I’m already doing everything, I feel like I’m as Jewish as I’m ever going to be.”
Over the years, Banks has shared pictures of many of her family’s Jewish celebrations, from menorah lightings to seder tables, but there’s nothing quite as special as the bar mitzvah of your youngest kid.
A hearty mazel tov to Magnus and his entire family!
Editor’s note: This piece was updated on Nov. 21 with new information about Magnus’ bar mitzvah theme.
