Mila Kunis Says She Was 'Told Never to Talk About' Her Jewish Faith While Growing Up

Mar. 15, 2025

Mila Kunisis opening up about her Jewish faith in adulthood versus during her childhood.

“I grew up doing nothing,” she said of not practicing any religious traditions as a kid in Ukraine, before she moved to the United States with her family at age 8 in the early 1990s.

“I always knew I was Jewish, but I was told never to talk about it,” Kunis continued. “I thinkbecause I was in a countrythat didn’t allow for religion.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.

Kunis and husbandAshton Kutcherhave incorporated more religious practices into their home now, and their two kids, daughterWyatt, 10, and sonDimitri, 8, are involved too.

“I was raised culturally Jewish, so for me it’s a culture,” said the actress. “And as I had kids, and my kids very much identify with the religion aspect of it, I was like, okay, I guess we’ll do [Shabbat] and we’ll do the candles.”

“There’s so much beautiful tradition in it,” Kunis added.

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

But also, “I think I have a fear of not having enough food,” said theFamily Guyvoice actress. “My fear of someone being hungry. Like, the worst thing my kids can say to me is, ‘I’m hungry.’ Food fixes everything. You’re tired? Eat some food. You’re cranky? Eat some food.”

“A health person’s gonna say this is unhealthy and we’re doing something wrong, and I understand; I’m working on it. But is it just something that’s embedded in me,” she added.

source: people.com