Mia Khalifa may have notoriety for her countercultural career, but that's old news! Mia is now in her mid-twenties, engaged, and more active than ever on social media. She has a lot to say about the drama, the gossip, and the image she ended up with — for good and for bad!
Ain't No Hollaback Girl
Everyone has a story, and this famous face is no exception. According to Mia: ''Everyone deserves a second chance if they want it.” Fans might be open to it, actually! What is the former camgirl doing nowadays?
Truthfully, little is known about this social media star. And honest questions deserve honest answers! How was her childhood as an immigrant from east to west? What was her secret college major, and her real passion, all along? The girl behind the controversy is now an activist, too — what's her mission?
Next, get to know the authentic Mia Khalifa in 2020 — reformed and real, these days!
A Whole New World
As some may have heard, Mia hails from the Middle East. But where, specifically? It might be surprising, but the Khalifa family is from Lebanon! As a Catholic there, Mia attended a private French-language school in Beirut until she was 10. Fancy, schmancy!
Few remember now that Lebanon was a majority Christian country. Intense conflict led to a mass exodus of most of these citizens: Up to 18 million Christian Lebanese have emigrated! Mia faced a very early reality of leaving the home she had always known. How did she react to this difficult news?
Movin' On Out
Surprisingly, Mia didn’t mind the idea! It's hard to change schoolsat that age, let alone countries. But Mia thought of it as an adventure. And in a way, it was! In a move from one capital to another, her family settled in Washington DC. Mia didn’t have proper English to start exploring her new home, at first.
The solution? Young Mia was put in ESL classes to bridge the gap, and bridge she did! Though she claims that she had a heavy accent for years, it's undectable now. Pretty impressive, really!
Militarized Mia
But where was the best place for Mia in America? Her parents valued education, but they were unsure about the public school system in DC. After all, they were used to fancy French schools in the Paris of the Middle East!
After getting a language foundation in the ESL program, Mia was sent to private school again. This time, it was military boarding school! It’s safe to say that many teens would be unhappy with that idea. But Mia is an out-of-the-box personality. How did she feel about this transition?
Free At Last
Mia actually says she loved military boarding school. It’s hard to believe, but she has described it a place she finally felt free. How could that be?
At this point, things were not easy on a day-to-day basis. As Mia began to Americanize and gain confidence in her new environment, this created a disconnect with her parents who didn't have the same social integration. They became stricter! At military school, Mia had a chance to sleep far away from her family's watchful eye and focus on being an American teen.
Texas Tricks
Interestingly, Mia was a great student under army conditions. Her high school actually had a special program that allowed her to gain college credit during the summer — an extra opportunity to stay away from home! After graduation, she went off to college in Texas.
She chose UT-El Paso because of its open credit acceptance policies. There, Mia had enough under her belt to do three years instead of four! But of course, fans are a ciut curious about what major she chose. What was Mia really passionate about, back then?
Thrill or Chill?
Surprise, surprise — Mia is a history buff. To succeed in her degree, she felt that she needed to pick a subject that would never bore her. All those facts and dates were definitely her thing! Smart move, no doubt.
Some might imagine that Mia paritied a lot, back in the day, But actually, she just focused on graduating early! Despite achieving that goal in the end, something was deeply bothering her. A secret vulnerability would eventually lead to decisions that would shock her family and friends. What was so distracting?
Putting Subway Jared To Shame
At the beginning of college, Mia was going through a big transformation. While it might not be evident now, she actually spent her teen years struggling with her weight and self-image. Some might find her unrecognizable!
But she did lose her baby weight, gradually. By making small changes with diet and exercise, Mia lost 50 pounds! After gaining some confidence, she did a bit of modeling work and bartended to get through school. She even made a brief appearance on a Spanish gameshow as a “briefcase girl”. But still, Mia secretly felt she wasn’t truly attractive. Why not?
Diet Aftermath
As many know, losing weight sometimes comes with an awkward adjustment. Mia suffered from loose skin and deflated breasts, and she has told interviewers she felt like she was left with the body of a middle-aged woman!
Mia knew she wanted to surgically correct this unexpected problem, and she heard the best place in the country for this type of procedure was Beverly Hills. But that’s not a cheap place, even for a week’s visit! In a clever move, Mia moved to Miami after college so she could get the second-best option in the country while simply paying normal rent as she recovered at home.
Attention Addiction
After surgery in Miami, things were looking bright. Mia was a college graduate with freedom from her parents, and she started to wear more revealing attire as a more confident person in public. In college, she hid her body most of the time with baggy clothes!
Mia describes seeing positive male attention on a level she had never experienced in her life, and this was intoxicating. She finally felt validated, and she loved it. Perhaps this was the perfect storm for a chance meeting that would come next.
A Surprise Encounter
While strolling in Miami, a man approached Mia and told her she was exceptionally beautiful. He asked if she had ever done modeling!
For a girl with chronic low self-esteem and weight issues, this was a compliment she was primed to accept. He flattered her about her body, and actually suggested nude modeling! A bit of a shock, but she kept listening.
The man invited her to take a tour of the studio and see what this business was all about. Mia took two weeks to decide, but her adventurous side took over. What would be wrong with a tour?
Mia's First Time
When Mia arrived at the headquarters, she was surprised by a number of things. First, it was a very fancy place, and not the scummy setting many might imagine. Second, the office was filled with warm, welcoming women. The cubicles seemed perfectly normal, with family pictures decorating desks.
The charm offensive continued, and Mia was asked if she might be interested in porn. Although she was taken aback, she considered the idea. Her body was getting top feedback from the outside world now, and this was hard to resist.
Just A Little Secret
Sometimes, life catches up to people. At the beginning, Mia thought that no one would end up seeing her pictures or videos. How could anyone recognize her from the billions of videos floating around online? Social media just wasn’t the big deal it is now!
Mia decided to move forward, and signed a contract to do a few movies. No one would ev er know, right? It’s safe to say she had no idea that her career would lead to a number one spot for years. Yikes! What were the chances of that, seriously?
Welcoming Women
What was it really like, on set? Mia describes her experience as very pampering and glamourous: Hair and makeup took hours, and she was given more than ten menus to order fancy food before the gig. Not a bad start! Plus, the men were socialable and friendly.
There were also many women present, creating a sense of normalcy in broad daylight. But after the 15 minutes of filming were done, Mia says she felt a mix of confusing emotions — guilt, shame, and validation. Pretty unsettling, really! Did this change, with time?
Spotted Online
At only 21, Mia had a lot on her emotional plate. She felt so beautiful after the scenes were filmed, but that quickly disappeared after the shoot. Perhaps she would finally feel comfortable after the next one! Mia continued onto a few more gigs.
At some point, people did get wind of her new hobby. She started receiving messages from friends who recognized her! With that wakeup call, Mia started to realize the reality of her decision: The fantasy was over that this was truly a private activity. Now, she felt horrible!
Playing With Fire
Still, she was not ready to quit altogether. Things took an unexpected turn when producers suggested an unusual script for the next job. Because of Mia’s Lebanese background, they thought a threesome featuring a hijab would be interesting for customers. Indeed, it would be — but not without consequences.
Why did she move forward? Mia actually says she told them she had concerns — “you mother******* are going to get me killed!” — but producers simply laughed. No one seemed to take her comments seriously about the cultural taboo. Couldn't she just walk away?
The Final Script
By now, Mia was torn. It was impossible to deny the impact on her personal relationships. And the whole trial in the industry seemed like a mistake. She rationalized that she would just do one more, perhaps. Maybe this one?
Still, was it responsible to go in this direction? Weren't there any older, wiser adults on set? According to the project’s producer: "We weren't trying to exploit [Khalifa's ethnicity]. We wanted to embrace it. No one could have anticipated the negativity surrounding it." What happened next, however, shocked everyone involved.
Rage Reaction
And, it finally happened. Mia was number one! She was astonished to see that her hijab scene had more than 1.5 million views around the world. What's more, she quickly became the top search on major sites. This wasn't the outcome she was hoping for!
According to the Vice President of Marketing for xHamster: "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." The publicity was record-setting!
A Furious Family
Mia said she was surprised about the level of outrage that exploded. She explained: “The scenes containing a hijabi are satirical. There are Hollywood movies that depict Muslims in a much worse manner than any scene Bang Bros [the company who made the video] could produce.”
But clearly, many religious people did not agree with her assessment. Mia started receiving death threats, and things became quite serious. What started as personal exploration was not liberating anymore. And sadly, her family disowned her over the videos. What a nightmare, through and through!
Death Threats Galore
Some of Mia's death threats were actually from ISIS sympathizers! This included a picture of a dead body with her head photoshopped into the image. And to her great shock, someone posted a map to her real home address online. Things had gotten totally wild!
Mia was understandably terrified, and she immediately moved out to stay at a hotel. She knew this was the end of her career, and she resigned despite protests from executives. All they could see were big dollar signs, refusing to acknowledge the real danger at this point.
Global Meltdown
As the video spread further, Mia became a very big controversy. Around the world, there were mixed reactions. Yes, some people were offended enough to threaten her with execution. But others looked at her decision differently!
For example, British-Lebanese author Nasri Atallah explained his views: "The moral indignation ... is wrong...First and foremost, as a woman, she is free to do as she pleases with her body.” Nasri didn’t seem to think that she owed anything to a country she left! How did Mia feel about Lebanon these days, by the way?
Long Lost Lebanon
As it turns out, Mia had a lot to say. The circumstances in Lebanon had now followed her all the way to America. Online, she explained that women's rights in her former country had a long way to go. If a Lebanese-American girl thousands of miles away could cause such an uproar, it was dire!
Although she used to tell people that she came from the most Westernized place in the Middle East, things had changed. With the departure of its Christian majority, Mia said she now saw the nation as “devastatingly archaic and oppressed."
Get Broke Quick Schemes
In the aftermath, Mia had to move on. She actually had only made $12,000 from all of her scenes, which surprised many people. The company made millions!
Mia left Miami, which she described as a toxic city. She tried to apply for normal day jobs, but it seemed she was recognized everywhere she went. This included awkward job interviews! Mia could barely leave her house and became quite reclusive. Crazy people shouting from cars and invading her personal space became a norm, and it was not easy to live a normal life.
The Sexy Secretary
After a few months of uncertainty, Mia was hired at a law firm for administrative work. And she was happy there for a while! The lawyers did know who she was, and it was a little bit uncomfortable at times. Still, she was happy they gave her a chance. After all, she was a top student fluent in three languages! Why not?
Sadly, the office closed, and she had to continue her job search. She tried bookkeeping, but says she was terrible at that type of work!
Instagram Madness
During her transition back to working life, she had to shut down her Instagram account because of all the threats. No matter what people said, she tried to maintain a sassy attitude. When someone told her she would burn in hell, she retorted: "I've been meaning to get a little tan recently".
Perhaps a break from social media was reasonable. Mia had plans to return, however, after a serious rebranding. What would her new image be like?
Sporty Surprise
Mia has actually successfully transitioned into an internet celebrity now, and she alternates between being a social media personality and a sports commentator. Yes, that’s right: Mia is a sports nut, too!
She hosted a daily sports show on the Youtube channel for Complex magazine called “Out of Bounds” with Gilbert Arenas. She built upon the positive audience feedback and landed a co-hosting role on a show called “SportsBall” on RoosterTeeth. Things have certainly changed for the better in Mia’s world!
Boob-mergency
Mia Khalifa did have one pretty public mishap since she started covering sports, though. It seems her previous beauty investment literally collided with a hockey puck during a recent game. Or rather, it collided with her! And squarely in the boob.
Considering the velocity of professional hockey shots, this was no laughing matter. It actually required her to undergo breast surgery for a ruptured implant!
The rubber puck was estimated to have been flying at around 80 miles per hour when it smacked her, but she has tried to laugh it off just a little. Mia kept the puck as a trauma souvenir! Mia explained on Instagram:
"I got hit in the boob with a puck during the game, and I'm 80% sure it ruptured an implant. But the good news is, I got a game-used puck from a Capitals Stanley cup playoff game. Worth it."
Cookin' Up A Storm
Since then, Mia has sold merchandise to make extra money. And she has professional plans in other areas she is passionate about, like cooking!
The now established sports commentator says she wants to be the ‘Chrissy Teigen’ of cooking. She has been running a youtube channel where she takes requests from fans to cook dishes they are curious about, and so far it looks pretty delicious!
And it seems that her expertise in the kitchen has led to her to one more surprise in life — falling in love with a real chef! How did she meet this mystery man?
Sweet and Swedish
Mia says she met her fiance in an unconventional way, but one that might be more and more common in the future because of our social media habits. She casually started following a chef on twitter that was recommended on the Michelin page.
And then, he noticed that a real-life blue checkmark user was watching him. Pretty intriguing!
The new couple started talking about food and developed a relationship online over a period of months. Mia was sure he didn’t know anything about her past, which was a hard thing to find for the infamous newsmakers. And she was delighted!
A Decent Proposal
Eventually, they flew to meet each other. Things went exceedingly well, and they have been seriously dating ever since! Her chef beau eventually admitted he had googled her after they developed their online relationship. He had to find out why she had millions of followers!
Her past didn’t bother him, and Mia was so happy to find someone she could connect with on a real level. He told her cooked with many chefs who had shaky pasts, and he knew that a person is a lot more than a sum of their mistakes. Mia seems so happy now! Today, she reflects: "I guess it was my rebellious phase. It wasn't really for me."
Activism and Insight
Perhaps Mia’s personal life coming together has given her the strength to speak more publicly about her experiences. She has done a round of interviews lately calling out the adult industry for its practices targeting young women with low self-esteem. And boy, does she have a lot to say!
At 26, she can now see that they engage in manipulative contracts and pressure tactics with girls who are not even legal to drink. She has suggested some legal reforms that might improve the situation, such as prohibiting street approaches to ensure that the only girls who get involved in the business are those who actively showed up on their own accord.
She also wants changes in the way contracts are presented to youngsters without lawyers, and perhaps Congress will take notice! Mia’s got a lot ahead of her, and perhaps her experiences illuminate some harsh realities about youth, self-esteem, and a business few of us ever see behind the scenes. It’s a big, wild world out there sometimes, isn’t it?
New Life, Old Problems
As Mia settles into her regular gal routine, New Life, Old Problems. Fans saw more remorse on social media recently: "Those 11 videos will haunt me until I die, and I don't want another girl to go through that – because no one should."
Despite trying to get material removed for years, all attempts have failed. Mia's peers have stepped in to create a petition on Change.org, with 2 million signatures already. What is their specific request, at this point?
The Justice for Mia Petition
The document explains: "Mia and her team have provided countless financial offers to the current owners of her domain name and pornographic videos to no avail...Big corporations are not giving Mia Khalifa a fair chance to demand her content in court due to financial advantage."
Furthermore: "We are demanding her domain names be returned, her videos be removed and fairly discussed in court without putting Mia Khalifa into deep financial ruin. Mia has stated her regret for her decisions in the porn industry multiple times." Whether this succeeds, only time will tell!
Mia Joins OnlyFans
But wait, something new? Observers couldn't help but notice a very famous face recently joined the new platform OnlyFans. While it's not required to post nudes and explicit material on the site, many do. With a former industry girl, many thought this would be the case!
Mia explained the details differently, though: "I am finally growing into my self-confidence in who I am and the decisions I make for me, and this is my way of being myself outside the perimeters of conventional social media. Even though I will not be creating nude content, I am going to be treating this page like my Instagram without terms of service." Was this two steps forward, one step back for Mia?
Not So Naked
Mia's account costs users $11.99 a month to see new, specialized content. Internet sleuths have checked in, of course, to see what she's really up to. It seems Mia is currently experimenting with different sensual photoshoots, mostly safe enough for work. On Instagram, she regularly cross-promotes her new venture, even when she's just eating sushi!
She reached out to fans directly: "I want to take my power back and just post what I want and what makes me feel good, and I'm just so thankful that y'all are along for this wild ride. This is all very new to me, I've never been on a platform as fan-facing, so any suggestions for improving my presence here is greatly appreciated! I love you!" But did all of them love her back, this time?
Furious Fanmail
As it turns out, no! First of all, some Twitter users were annoyed with what they called inconsistency. After so much time lamenting the industry that made her famous, she seemed to be getting right back into the sale of flesh. Plus, she had been reframing herself as an activist, only recently!
Other users were mad that they ended up paying for pretty photos that didn't deliver the goods. They were expecting a very different product, and didn't read the fine print! Where will this OnlyFans rabbit hole go? For now, Mia seems to be interested in expanding her social presence into more creative, money-making ideas. One was for charity. What was it?
Those Famous Frames
The glasses that started it all went up for auction after the 2020 explosion in Beirut. Horrified viewers from around the world will never forget how the Lebanese port went up in smoke, and Mia was one of them. Since it was her homeland, she thought she could uniquely impact fundraising. Ebay, it was!
To benefit the Lebanese Red Cross, Mia set up the ad and promoted it to her large Twitter audience. The description read: ''The novelty glasses are the best prop, I will sign them (if you want), and take one last polaroid wearing them before sending them off to their new home!" In the end, many wanted to help the Lebanese people. The winning offer? One hundred grand!