Netflix Co-Founder Wears Tefillin for the First Time, Celebrates Bar Mitzvah

Shiryn Ghermezian

Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph, left, with Yossi Chayo and Levi Chayo. Photo: Instagram.

Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph recently put on tefillin (phylacteries) for the first time with the help of two Jewish entrepreneurs interviewed on his podcast series “That Will Never Work.”

After the episode, the guests — brothers Yossi and Levi Chayo, who run Bellissimo Custom Hats in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn — asked Randolph, 64, about his upbringing, COLlive.com reported.

The Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor mentioned that he grew up in a Jewish family in Chappaqua, New York.

When the brothers asked Randolph if he ever wore tefillin before and he said no, they offered to help him put the religious leather straps onto his arms and forehead, and he agreed. They then assisted Randolph in reciting the necessary blessings when wearing tefillin, including “Shema Yisroel.” The three then danced together to celebrate Randolph’s bar mitzvah, which is the customary time when a Jewish boy first wears tefillin.

“He was very emotional and grateful,” the Chayo brothers told COLlive.com.

The brothers also gifted Randolph with a custom hat, which they showed off on in an Instagram post along with a group selfie. The brothers wrote in the caption, “We hope you love your custom hat and Mazal Tov on your Bar Mitzvah #nevertoolate.”

The episode of “That Will Never Work” featuring the Chayo brothers is expected to be released in September, COLlive.com reported.

Watch Levi and Yossi Chayo dance with Marc Randolph, after he wears tefillin for the first time, in the video below.