History Film / MyBigFatGreekWedding

* ArtisticLicenseReligion: Shortly after Ian and Toula become engaged, he gets baptized in the Greek Orthodox Church. While the church would gladly accept adult converts, the Church typically requires that the candidate go through membership classes regarding the theology and mores of the Church to ensure that the candidate still wants to convert, as well as to prepare them for what's to come. The candidate is then typically baptized on a major feast day, such as (Orthodox) Easter. This process is very similar to Catholic converts undergoing RCIA classes.

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: In the first movie it's mentioned that Nikki has a husband and Angelo has a girlfriend. In the sequel, Nikki is implied to be single (given how she flirts with a couple guys) and Angelo in an apparently long-term relationship with another man. To be fair, though, the events of the second film take place at least seventeen years after the first, and it is explicitly stated that the travel agency and the dry cleaners have closed, so it is possible Nikki got divorced and Angelo and his girlfriend broke up and he realized (or admitted to himself) that he was gay in the intervening time.

* ImpossiblyTackyClothes: Toula's reaction to her giant-white-cupcake of a wedding dress. "I'm a snow beast!" And the bridesmaids' dresses are even ''worse''.

** Toula and Ian are forced to admit this when Paris reveals she doesn't want to go to Northwestern University, which is in the city after they pushed her to apply for schools in Illinois. She wants to go to NYU, an Ivy League on the East Coast. While they are saddened, Toula admits that she wanted to give her daughter the opportunities she didn't receive; she and Ian help Paris move into her New York dormitory.

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: In the first movie it's mentioned that Nikki has a husband and Angelo has a girlfriend. In the sequel, Nikki is implied to be single (given how she flirts with a couple guys) and Angelo in an apparently long-term relationship with another man.
** To be fair, though, the events of the second film take place at least seventeen years after the first, and it is explicitly stated that the travel agency and the dry cleaners have closed, so it is possible Nikki got divorced and Angelo and his girlfriend broke up and he realized (or admitted to himself) that he was gay in the intervening time.

* UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}}: The setting, albeit not the sets (see CaliforniaDoubling). Averted in the third film which was filmed in Greece.

* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: The 1st film has Nick, Toula's younger brother, who is immature but he has a tight relationship with Toula and she is more annoyed with Athena, her older sister, than not. The second film has Paris's younger cousins serving this role when they aren't acting like mini versions of Gus.

* TechnologicallyBlindElders: The 2nd film plays this for comedy regarding Gus, when Toula and Nick are even seen fighting each other over who'd lose and have to teach their father basic computer search functions. Averted with the elderly women in their family, which includes Gus's mother, are advanced enough to use FaceTime and play games.

* UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}}: The setting, albeit not the sets (see CaliforniaDoubling).

** this another Greek custom btw as it is fairy common to people to only be know by their nicknames, even bosses and their employers, though it is not universal Cyprus, wich has Greek Cypriot population, does not do that as ofent but it is still there sometimes.

** At a big party, Nick teaches Ian to say "Everyone let's come into the house" in Greek. Ian wisely double-checks with Angelo who unfortunately is in on the joke so Ian tells the whole family "I have three testicles!". Cue everybody laughing and Nick and Angelo being chased by Ian.

* TrollingTranslator:
** This is Ian's RunningGag; in one memorable scene, he asks how to say "Dinner's ready!" in Greek, but the phrase he's told actually means "I have three testicles!"
** In one instance, Nick tricks Ian into telling Toula's mother, "Nice tits." She immediately turns and [[DopeSlap slaps Nick upside the head]].

A sequel, ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2'', was released on March 2016 and focuses on the wedding of Gus and Maria who find out they were never legally married.

A third film ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3'' was filmed in 2022 in Greece.

* RedOniBlueOni: At a family level: the Portokalos are totally red, while the Millers are totally blue. Part of the movie's RuleOfFunny is that the Millers are as much of an extreme portrayal of "boring" WASPs as the Portokalos are of FunnyForeigner Greeks. The only exceptions are the protagonists, Toula and Ian, who are nowhere near as extreme as the rest of their families.

* RedOniBlueOni: At a family level: the Portokalos are totally red, while the Millers are totally blue. Part of the movie's RuleOfFunny is that the Millers are as much of an extreme portrayal of "boring" WASPS as the Portokalos are of FunnyForeigner Greeks. The only exceptions are the protagonists, Toula and Ian, who are nowhere near as extreme as the rest of their families.

-->'''Voula:''' What do you mean, he don't ''eat no meat?''...[[ComicallyMissingThePoint That's okay, that's okay. I make lamb]]. [[note]]This is also unrealistic. Plenty of traditional Greeks are vegetarians and it's not a big deal (they wouldn't call themselves that but say "I don't eat meat." [[https://greeking.me/blog/greek-food-guide/item/172-why-greece-is-the-best-place-for-vegetarians Here's what Ian could realistically expect if he said that.]]

* RacistGrandma: Toula's grandmother despises Turkish people. To judge from her age, this is probably a result of World War II. Sadly, certain events of that time [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek–Turkish_relations explain a lot about her attitude.]] Television airings cut all of her "ugly Turk" dialogue, which makes for some awkward dialogue jumps (like Grandma walking in, almost immediately hitting her son, and Toula's voice-over explaining that they told her the war was over).

* WeddingEnhancedFertility: Toula says she got pregnant "a minute later". The movie ends with her taking their six year old daughter to Greek school.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Alexander the Great was Macedonian, not Greek. That means Gus and the Portokalos Family would also be Macedonian [[spoiler: if he actually ''had'' been related to him.]]
** Though having a Macedonian ancestor that lived over 2000 years ago wouldn't necessarily not make them Greek as many Greeks would likely have some Macedonian ancestry given Macedonia is part of modern Greece.

* TactfulTranslation: Unimpressed with Ian's attempt to wish him a happy Easter ("Cheestro Nasty!"--meant to be ''Χριστός ἀνέστη'' (''Christos Anesti'', meaning "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paschal_greeting Christ is Risen!]]"), Gus mutters in Greek, "My people were writing philosophy when your people were still swinging in trees." At Ian's confused look, Toula says, "He likes you."

* TactfulTranslation: Unimpressed with Ian's attempt to wish him a happy Easter ("Cheestro Nasty!"[[note]]Meant to be ''Χριστός ἀνέστη'' (''Christos Anesti'' meaning "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paschal_greeting Christ is Risen!]]"[[/note]]), Gus mutters in Greek, "My people were writing philosophy when your people were still swinging in trees." At Ian's confused look, Toula says, "He likes you."