Lebanese References in Popular TV Shows and Movies

Subtle nods to Lebanon always make us happy, especially watching our favorite TV shows and movies. Here are some blink-and-you’ll-miss-it references to Lebanon you may have missed or didn’t know about.

Golden Girls (1985-1992)

This iconic sitcom has to be the first Lebanese vs. Lesbian joke to ever happen. In season two of Golden Girls, there’s a scene where Sophia, Blanche, and Dorothy are talking about Jean, Dorothy’s old college friend.

Sophia: “For starters, Jean is a lesbian.”

Blanche: “What’s funny about that?”

Sophia: “You aren’t surprised?”

Blanche: “Of course not. I mean, I’ve never known any personally, but…isn’t Danny Thomas one?”

Dorothy: “Not Lebanese, Blanche. Lesbian.”

If you don’t know who Danny Thomas is, he’s an iconic actor of Lebanese descent who made it big in Hollywood during the 1960s. Read more about him here.

You can watch the full clip here:

Bend It Like Beckham (2002)

Bend It Like Beckham is a 2002 film starring Parminder Nagra as Jess, a British-Indian girl, and Keira Knightley as Jules. Both aspire to break free from traditional expectations and pursue their passion for football.

Jules’ mother, who isn’t supportive of her daughter’s football dreams because she doesn’t consider it “feminine”, demands that Jess leaves her daughter alone.

In one memorable scene, the mother notices Jess wearing her shoes, borrowed to match her traditional Punjabi outfit and angrily says, “Get your lesbian feet out of my shoes!” To which a family member responds with the now-iconic line, “She no Lebanese, she Punjabi!”

You can watch the clip here:

Glee (2009-2015)

In the Glee Season 2 episode “Born This Way,” which centers on embracing one’s true identity, Heather Morris who plays Brittany S. Pierce creates a T-shirt for Naya Rivera’s character, Santana Lopez, that reads “LEBANESE.”

Santana: “I’m Hispanic…wait, was that supposed to be lesbian?”

Brittany: “Yeah, isn’t that what it says?”

You can watch the full clip here:

Mean Girls (2004)

We have to mention the reference that EVERYONE knows because it’s just too good of a joke. Regina George must’ve heard Janice say she was Lebanese and mistook it for “lesbian”.

That simple mix-up kicked off the whole running joke that Janis was in love with Regina (and later, gets accused by Cady of being in love with her).

False alarm, guys. She’s just Lebanese.

How I Met Your Mother (2005-2014)

Literally in the very first episode of How I Met Your Mother, Barney, the show’s resident womanizer, admits that his latest obsession is Lebanese girls. A quick, fun shoutout that puts Lebanon on the HIMYM map right from the start.

This isn’t exactly a reference in the same way that the previous ones are, but it’s still a memorable shoutout that most Lebanese people didn’t expect seeing when they started this show.

You can watch the clip here:

Enjoyed this read? You might also like: Lebanon Had Its Own Pussycat Dolls (With a Total of 17 Members)