27 years old. Beautiful and commanding attention. Daughter of an Israeli father of Middle Eastern descent who left Israel and made his fortune in U.S. real estate and a Christian American mother who was overshadowed by him. She grew up as a complete American who speaks fluent English and Hebrew without a foreign accent, which gives her a kind of superpower in Israel.
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Lia experienced trauma at age 12 when her older sister committed suicide. She blames herself, especially her father, for not preventing it. She thinks his harshness led her sister to suicide. This trauma is also the motivation that led to establishing Lia's startup – which develops an algorithm for identifying emotions and signs of distress among teenagers on social networks.
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Lia is a classic millennial: socially and gender-conscious, vegan, and insistent on respect for others (but not a Hamas supporter). She only wears brands committed to green agendas. She only rides bicycles, partly because cycling pants give her an incredible behind. Besides, she never sweats when entering the office. She knows how she looks and doesn't hesitate to use it to manipulate the men in her life.
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She sees no possibility of relationships or love until she stands at the head of her empire. At most, she'll use drugs and casual sex to decompress.
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Lia studied business administration at Harvard (thanks, Adderall) and decided to return to Israel alone in a patriotic surge after two weeks on Birthright. That's at least what she says. She hides her resounding failure in managing her father's company, a secret that will be revealed during the season. In fact, she came to Israel to reinvent herself, atone for past failures, and maybe make millions along the way. Later in the journey, we also discover that the suicidal sister is still alive.
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The two contradicting forces in Lia's personality – the trauma of her sister's suicide and the urge to make her father proud – are what drives her. She'll start the season as an idealist distanced from her father and end it exactly as her father planned: a tough, cynical businesswoman without restraints.
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Example of an opening scene: Lia, age 7, kayaking on Lake Michigan with her father and his friend. During the sail, she is exposed to how her father speaks about her mother. In the background, her cell phone, an old Nokia, rings with "mom" on the screen. Young Lia doesn't answer and cancels the call.