Mia Khalifa

Mia Khalifa (Arabic: ميا خليفة [ˈmijaː χaˈliːfa(h)]; born 1993) is a Lebanese-American media personality and former pornographic film actress. Rising to prominence in late 2014, she became one of the most searched performers on Pornhub after a controversial scene featuring a hijab sparked global attention drawing both widespread popularity and backlash.

Despite her brief three-month career in adult films, Khalifa was voted the "Number 1 Porn Star" on Pornhub in 2015. In January 2017, xHamster reported that she was the most-searched-for adult actress of 2016. In 2018, she became the most-searched-for actress on Pornhub.

After leaving the adult industry, Khalifa has worked as a webcam model, OnlyFans creator, and sports commentator. She launched her own line of jewelry in 2023. Khalifa has also advocated for sex workers' rights and criticized U.S. military aid to Israel in the context of Israeli apartheid, which has led to backlash from commentators and former employers.

Khalifa was born in Beirut, Lebanon, and raised Catholic in what she describes as a "very conservative" home. She attended a French-language private school in Beirut, where she also learned to speak English. Khalifa's family left their home in the wake of the South Lebanon conflict, moving to the United States in 2001.

After moving to the United States, her family lived in Montgomery County, Maryland, where she played lacrosse in high school. She has said she was bullied at school for being "the darkest and weirdest girl there", which intensified after the September 11 attacks.

She attended Massanutten Military Academy in Woodstock, Virginia, and later graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso with a Bachelor of Arts in history. She supported herself there by working as a bartender, model, and "briefcase girl" on a local Deal or No Deal–esque Spanish game show.

Khalifa entered the pornographic film industry in October 2014, after being recruited by a man who asked her if she was interested in nude modeling. Her stage name was taken from the name of her dog, Mia, and American rapper Wiz Khalifa.

She came to widespread attention after the release of a scene from Bang Bros in which she wears a hijab during a threesome with Julianna Vega and Sean Lawless. The scene brought Khalifa instant popularity, as well as criticism from writers and religious figures, and led to her parents publicly disowning her. Alex Hawkins, vice president of marketing for xHamster, said, "The outrage it caused in the Arab world ended up being a bit of a 'Streisand effect'. Suddenly, everyone was searching for her. The effort to censor her only made her more ubiquitous." With more than 1.5 million views, the 22-year-old Khalifa became the most searched-for performer on the adult video sharing website Pornhub.