Dana Eden, one of the most successful Israeli television creators who is best known for the series Tehran, was found dead in an Athens hotel room on Sunday, Israeli media reported.
Tehran, which won an International Emmy for Best Drama Series in 2021, follows a young female Mossad agent (Niv Sultan) who is sent undercover to Tehran to dismantle the nuclear program. The second season co-starred Glenn Close, and the third season featured Hugh Laurie as a nuclear regulatory inspector.
The third season was released in 2024 in Israel on KAN 11 and a few weeks ago internationally on Apple TV+, which has broadcast all three seasons. The new season topped Apple’s charts. The series is sympathetic to anti-government dissidents, such as students and women’s rights activists, and presents the regime as repressive and corrupt.
Greek news outlets, such as Ta Nea, Documento, and Protothema, reported that Eden was found dead in an Athens hotel room where she had been staying since February 4, where season four of Tehran was filming. Greek media also stated that her brother discovered her body, that her neck and limbs were bruised, and that pills were found in the room. Authorities say that suicide is the suspected cause of death, according to Greek media.
Reuters reported this information in its article on her death as well. Israeli media initially reported that, according to Greek media, an investigation was being conducted into whether the Iranian government might be responsible for her death. Shortly afterwards, however, it withdrew this allegation, with Channel 12’s Yonatan Rieger labeling it “fake news.”
Eden’s death at 52 comes as a huge blow to the Israeli television industry. She co-created and co-produced the series with Shula Spiegel through their production company, Donna and Shula Productions. The company posted a message on Monday saying “the rumors of the death being criminal or nationalistic are not true and baseless.” It implored the public to refrain from speculation about the cause of her death.
Culture and Sport Minister Miki Zohar tweeted a tribute to her: “I received with great sorrow the news of the passing of Dana Eden, one of the most prominent and influential producers in the Israeli television industry.”
“Dana left a deep mark on Israeli creation and brought our story to international stages with pride, talent, and courage. I share in the grief of the family, friends, and colleagues. May her memory be a blessing,” he wrote.
KAN 11 posted this tribute to her: “We mourn the passing of our colleague and partner in a long line of productions, series, and programs at the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation – Dana Eden.”
“Dana was among the senior figures in Israel’s television industry and played a central role in creating and leading some of the corporation’s most prominent and influential productions. Her professional and personal legacy will continue to shape Israeli television for many years to come,” it continued.
The Israeli Academy for Film and Television released a statement saying, “The academy bows its head over the untimely death of Dana Eden and shares in the family’s grief.”
When Eden was born, her father, the producer and writer Yoram Levi, established the advertising production company Dana Productions in her name. In 1996, her father suggested that she join the company and establish a television department. Eden became head of the development department and, at age 23, produced her first series, Youth Dreams, which was broadcast for three seasons on Channel 2 in the late 1990s.
When her father fell ill with Parkinson’s, Eden took over Dana Productions and changed its focus from commercials to television series.
She produced and created series such as Shaul (2001), She’s Got It (2018), It’s Not the Age (2019), and the acclaimed crime drama Magpie (2019).
In addition, a series she produced, Mother’s Day (2012), about a mother with a penchant for lying, was sold to CBS for a remake and was made into an American television movie starring Debra Messing.
Just last week, Eden was active on social media, posting positive reviews for Tehran on Facebook, as well as on-set photos from the filming of the fourth season.
She was interviewed by Ynet during the war between Iran and Israel in June 2025, after she sailed from Israel to Cyprus with her son, actor Gur Eden, who was heading to Italy to film the series, Martin Scorsese Presents: The Saints, about the lives of Christian saints. According to Ynet, Gur Eden was cast as Jesus in the series.
“For the past two years, I’ve been living in this overlap between reality and the show. We keep asking ourselves whether the events will outpace the series or vice versa. In the end, it’s a suspense thriller, and we want to keep it that way,” she told Ynet.
“I have to admit – we’ve been pretty accurate. Season three is extremely relevant and touches on exactly what’s happening now in the war: centrifuges, efforts to stop Iran from reaching the bomb, nuclear inspectors, and Iran’s deception. Thomas Friedman from The New York Times recommends watching Tehran to understand the Mossad’s work. Even the former FBI director endorsed it.”
Rumors of nationlist, criminal involvement in death are unfounded, production company says
The production company of 52-year-old Eden stated that the rumors of nationalist or criminal involvement in her death are unfounded.
Production on the series will be halted for a week so that the cast and crew can attend Eden’s funeral and shiva and honor her memory, N12 News reported on Monday evening.
Tehran stars many well-known Iranian actors who now live abroad, including Shaun Toub and Navid Negahban. Since filming in Iran was never in the cards, the producers settled on Athens as the best substitute for Tehran from the first season onward. KAN released the series on its website with Farsi subtitles, so Iranians could watch it. Iranian government-linked press outlets criticized the series as Zionist propaganda and were angered by its depiction of unsanctioned sexual activity among its elites.
There is no evidence that the Iranian government has ever targeted a foreign filmmaker, although it has been ruthless in its persecution of its own filmmakers and actors. Mohammad Rasoulof and Jafar Panahi, two of Iran’s leading directors, have been arrested and given lengthy prison sentences several times.
Notably, Panahi’s latest film, It Was Just an Accident, is nominated for an Oscar in the 2026 Best International Feature category. The film was submitted to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences by France, because it has French co-producers, rather than by Iran. Panahi went abroad to promote the movie and was sentenced in absentia to a year in prison in Iran for “propaganda activities.”
In addition, acclaimed Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf was the victim of two unsuccessful assassination attempts while shooting his anti-Taliban drama Kandahar in 2001.