Israeli actress Adi Spiegelman says she didn't know her girlfriend, Julia Pacino, was the daughter of the legendary Hollywood actor when the two first met.
In an exclusive interview with Ynet's sister publication Laisha Magazine, the actress and professional tennis player for the first time talks in depth about her relationship with Al Pacino's daughter.
Spiegelman, who is only 22, is already ranked among the 1,000 best tennis players in the world, in addition to being a successful actress and model, whose career includes campaigns for some of the world’s most luxurious brands, including Armani and Balmain.
Over the past year, Spiegelman’s life took a turn when she moved to Los Angeles and started to cultivate an acting career that already includes a part in an upcoming Netflix film, as well appearances in music videos for singer and actress Bella Thorne and rapper Tyga.
The most significant change, however, was Spiegelman’s decision to come out as gay, revealing to the world she is actually in a relationship with a 31-year-old film director who also happens to be the daughter of the veteran actor.
According to Spiegelman, when the two first met on a celebrity-oriented dating app Raya, she had no idea her partner-to-be was Al Pacino’s daughter.
“I’m dyslexic, I read the name Pacino like Pakino,” says Spiegelman. “On the phone I asked her ‘what is Pakino? Is it a Brazilian name? German?' And she told me that her last name is actually Italian and that it is pronounced as Pacino," she adds.
“I said, ‘ahh cool, like that actor, now I’ll remember.’ It was then that she told me ‘you’re sweet, that’s actually my father’,” Spiegelman says with a smile.
Six months later, and the two are now engaged, living in Los Angeles, working on two new films to be produced by Julie's own production company, “Tiny Apples" and preparing for their wedding - a glamorous ceremony set to be held in Hawaii this winter.
Spiegelman has already met her future in-laws, including, of course, the famous actor who himself has been romantically linked to an Israeli actress and musician, Meital Dohan, with whom he had an on-and-off relationship for several years.
"I met Julie's mom after two months via FaceTime because she lives in New York," says Spiegelman. "I met her father, who lives in Los Angeles, after three months of dating. She told me that she never brought her partners to meet her family or friends before, and that I was the first to meet either of them,” adds Spiegelman.
“It was a Sunday lunch at his house. All his friends were there, and he ordered Italian food. He is a close and loving father. We go to him for dinner every weekend.
“All of Julie's personality comes from him. This includes her sense of humor, charm and values - a promise is sacred and life is not about fame.”
Spiegelman also claims she had never watched any of her future father-in-law’s movies until a few months ago. “When Julie realized that I had not seen any of her father's films, she forced me to watch 'Scarface',” Spiegelman adds.