Joshua Shapira

Grew Up… with his parents Irina and Arkady, Russian immigrants living in New York. They brought Joshua up to be a nice Jewish boy, but somewhere along the line, Joshua got involved with some Jewish-Russian gangsters. His friends growing up were hoodlums and criminals for the mafia.

Living… back from Brooklyn, hiding out in his old Brighton Beach neighborhood. He’s here on business, which doesn’t seem so dangerous until you realize that Joshua is a hitman for the mafia. After a hit goes wrong in Brooklyn, Joshua knows that people from the mafia want him dead. Joshua decides to visit his estranged brother, Reuben, who still lives with his parents. Joshua wants to see his mother, who is dying, but he can’t stand the thought of seeing his father, who abused him and made his childhood a living hell.

Profession… contract killer. Joshua is cold-blooded and methodical in his killings. He is feared and well-known for his work. His younger brother still looks up to him, but doesn’t understand the full extent of Joshua’s work.

Interests… movies, his old friends, his younger brother, and Alla, a local girl he grew up with.

Relationship Status… dating. He starts seeing Alla, who admires him. Joshua takes Alla and his brother Reuben to a movie, and soon things start to take off from there. Joshua knows that he can stay with her if he needs to.

Challenge… reconnecting with his past. Joshua has unfinished business with his brother and his dying mother. But it takes him time to realize that perhaps his biggest and most important challenge is coming to terms with his old man.

Personality… quiet, dark, and brooding. Joshua appears to have no remorse over the murders he commits for money. He’s hardened to the bone, but he has a real soft spot for his brother and mother, and he has deep internal soft spots where the wounds of his harsh relationship with his father still hurt like open sores.