10 Most Iconic Signature Drinks In Movies

Alcohol runs and flows in a torrential flood of different drinks across movie history, some vibrant and bright in a martini glass, some murky and blotted in a dirty tumbler. To some characters, a favorite drink is a crutch, to others, it’s an accessory. But to these characters, their drinks are an actual part of them, as indispensable as a hand or a foot.

The characters below had some very different ideas about what made up the perfect drink – and that’s exactly how it should be. A drink of choice ultimately reveals a lot about a character – especially when they’re reluctant to put it down.

10 Olde English 800: Boyz N The Hood (1991) – Stream On Hulu

Though this particular brand of malt liquor was widespread across New York City, its cultural significance is largely down to one man, Ice Cube. Usually drinking a forty, it’s hard to spot his character of Doughboy in the period-defining John Singleton movie, Boyz N The Hood, without one.

The drink made its way deep into nineties rap culture, finding itself in countless verses and present on N.W.A album covers, a rap group Ice Cube was by no coincidence, instrumental in. Having built a persona so strong that it transposed between music and acting, Ice Cube’s first on-screen performance, chugging forties in Boyz N The Hood, was only the start of an exceptional career.

9 Martini: Dr. No (1962) – Rent From Amazon Video

With 26 films under his belt, and the drink appearing in 21 of those, it’s hard to think of a drink more synonymous with a character than James Bond with a Martini – shaken, not stirred. The drink hasn’t been as common in the most recent entries, but thanks to its presence in some of the most famous Bond films of all time like Dr. No and Casino Royale, it will always be the spy’s signature drink.

Funnily enough, many bartenders state that a Martini shaken instead of stirred is just about the worst way to have a Martini – as explained by drinkspirits.com. Still, it’s not like anyone is going to tell James Bond that the Martini he orders is diluted and a waste of good vodka.

8 Sweet Vermouth On The Rocks With A Twist: Groundhog Day (1993) – Stream On Starz

It probably would take repeating the same day 12,394 times to get this drink order right, conveniently, that was exactly what happened to Phil Connors in Groundhog Day. A TV weatherman disenfranchised with everyone and everything, the time-loop he finds himself trapped in seems to be only amendable by a complete change of character, helped by a blossoming connection with his producer, Rita.

Phil starts the film as an unlikable cynic, initially ordering a Jim Beam with ice. The significance of a ‘Sweet Vermouth on the rocks with a twist’ is it’s Rita’s favorite drink, a fact he learns on one time-loop and orders it for himself the next. It’s indicative of his new outlook, saying it makes him ‘think of Rome, the way the sun hits the buildings.’

7 Screwdriver: Jackie Brown (1997) – Stream On HBO Max

It’s hard being the film that follows Pulp Fiction, and Jackie Brown has found itself often swept under the rug when discussions of Tarantino’s work come up. But Jackie Brown is a wonderful tribute to a host of classic movies, a masterclass in deception, and a fantastic portrayal of underground crime in 90s Los Angeles.

The film is particularly brought to life by the character of Ordell Robbie, played by Samuel L. Jackson, a gun smuggler living a coastal life with his surfer girlfriend and friend Louis Gara, played by Robert De Niro. The group sits around making meaningless conversations sipping away their time on screwdrivers, a drink simply composed of vodka and orange juice.

6 Manhattan: Some Like It Hot (1959) – Rent From Apple TV

Whereas many of the drinks on this list are held in dingy bars or private functions, the Manhattan from Some Like It Hot is served in paper cups atop a bunk bed in a train carriage. This classic Billy Wilder film follows two runaway musicians disguised as women, but is almost always remembered for Marilyn Monroe’s performance as Sugar.

The film was a triumph, and Monroe a highlight in it all, especially in the now-famous manhattan sequence, where a veritable party takes place after Monroe breaks open a smuggled bottle of bourbon and, upon discovery of vermouth, realizes they might be able to conjure up a manhattan.

5 Pinot Noir: Sideways (2004) – Stream On Roku

Possibly most famous for the line: ‘if anyone orders merlot, I’m leaving’ this film from Alexander Payne is a twist on the usual romp expected of a film that follows two friends on a wine-tasting road trip.

Miles quickly becomes the focus of the pair. An un-published writer, he’s filled with self-loathing and anxiety, closing off more and more from the world and the people around him. It makes Miles’s monologue about his favorite wine, Pinot Noir, so potent and telling: ‘Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot’s potential can then coax it into its fullest expression.’

4 Singapore Sling: Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas (1998) – Rent From Apple TV

Hunter S. Thompson is thinly veiled as the surrogate of Raoul Duke in his most famous novel to be adapted on screen. The raucous, speeding affair of a movie is charged with narcotics, alcohol, violence, and all-around hedonism, fittingly represented by the main characters’ drink order, ‘Singapore Slings with Mezcal on the side.’

A colorful, fruity drink that packs a secret punch is accompanied by a very obtuse, blatantly powerful shot of mezcal. It’s the same one-two as the viewing experience, one that bombards the viewer with dream-like sequences containing subtly anarchist undertones, before hitting home with blunt statements like ‘In a closed society where everybody’s guilty, the only crime is getting caught.’

3 White Russian: The Big Lebowski (1998) – Stream On Tubi

The Big Lebowski trails ‘the dude’, a man so insignificant that he may actually be one of the most prophetic voices of all time. The Coen brothers have a habit of putting a relatably flawed protagonist at the center of their films, and in this case, the dude’s relaxed (stoned) nature rises above any of the absurd situations he’s put in, giving him an ironically suave demeanor.

The character is a kind of mockery of the sharp, witty detective normally found in a film-noir plot, and his drink order too couldn’t be a better satire on the masculine, hard beverages traditionally expected. The dude drinks White Russians, incessantly. A drink composed of Vodka, Coffee Liqueur, and milk. Truthfully, it’s the perfect stoner movie cocktail.

2 Bloody Mary: Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood (2019) – Rent From Amazon Video

There’s something quintessentially 60s about a Bloody Mary, a cocktail of vodka, Tabasco, and tomato juice, especially when it’s served in a hurricane glass with a gigantic rib of celery. It’s this stylized drink that we see Brad Pitt’s character Cliff Booth devour in one of the very first scenes, setting up the exaggerated, yet accurate look for the rest of the film.

One interesting thing to note about his drink choice is that it’s also the beverage choice of his wife, the person everyone suspects Cliff Booth to have killed, but couldn’t prove. Despite the wide range of drinks consumed in this film, it’ll always be the comical image of this Bloody Mary that stands out.

1 Mint Julep: The Great Gatsby (2013) – Stream On HBO Max

More prominently mentioned in the novel than in either film iteration, this cocktail still finds itself gracing the hands of its greatest fan, Daisy Buchanan, in many scenes. The drink is noticeably more prominent in Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 iteration, where Carey Mulligan played the esteemed, bubbly woman.

The mint julep, a cooling, refreshing drink, is composed primarily of bourbon and originates in the south. Daisy’s penchant for it in this tale is likely representative of her desire for Gatsby, a breath of fresh air that is quite literally riding in off the profits of bourbon smuggling.

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