Mo Amer at a comedy show in Ramallah, Palestine
Mo is not your traditional sitcom. It is warm and funny like a sitcom—but tells the story of a Palestinian refugee in Texas.
Mo Amer co-created, co-writes, directs and stars in the series. He and his family were Palestinian refugees who fled Kuwait during the 1991 Gulf War—experiences that give the series its authenticity.
The first series hit Netflix in 2022 and was a word‑of‑mouth success. The genocide in Gaza and the re-election of Donald Trump give this second series more power and urgency.
Mo blends together the ingredients of food, identity, immigration, family and Middle Eastern politics. And it is everything Trump hates.
It’s a story of refugees building new lives, creating solidarity against racism, standing up to the put downs of the condescending rich and outwitting the cops. Series one begins with an immigration raid.
Mo loses his job and has no choice but to sell knockoff goods out of his car.
“All I have is my asylum claim and a bunch of ‘Chanel’ bags”, he says. They are not knock-offs—they are “high end replicas”.
Mo has escaped Palestine only to be shot in a grocery store buying cat food that the cat doesn’t want anyway. He has to navigate the expectations of his Muslim family and his Mexican lover.
Maria, a car mechanic, has her own battles to fight. Mo and his mother’s asylum claim depends on him realising the full extent of the torture his father endured.
Mo is hustling to make a living when he discovers his mother’s skill with olive oil can bring them success. The series ends with Mo accidentally “deporting” himself to Mexico.
Series two begins with Mo marooned in Mexico with no legal route home to his family and his vital immigration hearing.
He experiences the horrifying reality of illegal border crossings and the desperate people who attempt them—even before Trump militarised the border.
Back in Texas, his brother Sameer is trying his best to flog the family’s olive oil. Maria has left Mo for a new love—Guy, a successful Israeli‑American chef.
A confrontation in Guy’s restaurant escalates when a bystander hears “Hamas” instead of “hummus”. The second season takes a broader view than the first, which revolved round Mo’s attempts to get citizenship.
Mo humanises every character who appears. In Trump’s America, the show feels like an act of defiance as well as great entertainment.
The right for Palestine to exist and the crimes of Zionism are themes running through the series. The finale sees Mo return to Palestine. If only all Palestinian refugees had the chance to go home.
- Mo series one and two are available on Netflix
