Hit Israeli show 'Asfur' is coming to Netflix: 'We rewatched everything and felt like different people'

For the first time since it took over Israeli screens in 2010, the series Asfur is making a comeback – this time on Netflix. Starting this Friday, the hit show will stream on the platform after undergoing extensive technical restoration. It was upgraded from SD format to near-HD quality, adapted for modern viewing, and even had frames hand-colored. In an interview on the show Tarbutnikim on Kan Reshet Bet, the show's creators and stars, Hanan Savyon and Guy Amir, shared their excitement about the revival, their return to the original raw footage, and the long journey they’ve had since the show first aired.

“We sat down and rewatched everything,” they said this Monday. “On one hand, this is the work we’re most associated with – our big breakthrough. On the other hand, we’re no longer the same people. Fifteen years have passed – we look different, we think differently, and even the things we shouted back then no longer fully resonate with who we are today.”

Asfur, which follows four friends living in a bus on unregulated land in Jerusalem, was inspired by a true story. In the interview, Hanan Savyon revealed that the character of Itzik, portrayed by Oz Zehavi, was based on his older brother, Itzik, who passed away.

“He was the life of the party, the king of Jerusalem,” Savyon said. “He introduced me to that world – it started when I worked with him in renovations, and I saw that place for the first time: a bus that looked like a junk heap on the outside, but inside—was a palace. The show is just one of the gifts he gave me. Everything I am, comes from him. It’s also based on the friendships he had—real, lifelong friendships.”

Asfur premiered in 2010 on Israel's HOT network and became a cultural phenomenon almost overnight. It told the story of young people fighting for the land they lived on, on the edge of the law, and turned fringe characters – like the homeless – into figures of widespread public affection.

“At the time, it spread like wildfire,” the duo recalled. “You couldn’t walk down the street without hearing someone talk about it. Somehow, it also captured the spirit of the times: a year after it aired came the Tel Aviv tent protests. The homeless became attractive. It felt like the show was ahead of its time.”

Since Asfur, Hanan and Guy have continued to collaborate on hit series like Head Wounded, Château Ein Kerem, and Through Fire and Water, as well as films such as Maktub, Forgiveness, and Cat’s Luck. They’re currently working on a new project, though details remain under wraps. “We’re nearing the end of filming after four months, including shoots abroad and working through a challenging wartime period,” they revealed in the interview. “It’s not easy to work in times like these, but we believe that’s exactly what people need – a moment of escape, of comfort.”