Seventh-day Adventist Church in popular culture refers to the coverage of Adventists and Adventism in film, television, literature, postage stamps and have been discussed in the media for their longevity. Adventists have impacted world eating habits in the breakfast and health food areas.
One author wrote, "popular culture hasn’t often been very kind to Adventists."
Representation in cinema
The movie Evil Angels (released as A Cry in the Dark outside of Australia and New Zealand) portrays the events surrounding the death of Azaria Chamberlain, the daughter of Seventh-day Adventist Church pastor Michael Chamberlain and his wife Lindy. Lindy is falsely accused and convicted of killing the nine-week-old baby, and the public's unfamiliarity with of the practices of the religion are shown as one of the causes of public opinion turning against the Chamberlains.
Another Australian film, The Nostradamus Kid, depicts a coming-of-age story in which a Seventh-day Adventist young man grows up in the 1950s.
2016 Hollywood film Hacksaw Ridge depicts the story of Desmond Doss, a Seventh-Day Adventist medic who exhibited extraordinary bravery in the Pacific Theatre during World War II, including single-handedly saving the lives of at least 75 wounded American soldiers in one night under heavy enemy fire on Maeda Escarpment Okinawa, for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor. Doss saw himself as a conscientious cooperator and voluntary enlisted in the US Army to be a medic during the war. He suffered significant abuse and was court martialed for his personal beliefs.
The 2004 film Hotel Rwanda focuses on the actions of Paul Rusesabagina who was internationally honored for saving 1,268 civilians during the Rwandan genocide. Rusesabagina was educated in Adventist elementary and secondary schools and describes himself as a "lapsed Adventist" in his autobiography.
Representations in television
In the American series Gilmore Girls, one of the recurring characters, Mrs. Kim, is a strict, caricatured Seventh-day Adventist.
In the House episode "Here Kitty", Dr. Gregory House refers to the events surrounding William Miller and the "Great Disappointment" of 1844. He remarks about Miller, "every time he was irrefutably proved wrong, it redoubled everyone's belief." Towards the end of the episode the patient rebuts House by saying "his followers never faded out, they became the Seventh-day Adventists – a major religion".
The 1970s situational comedy, All in the Family alludes briefly to Adventists. In the sixth season episode "The Little Atheist", main character Archie Bunker says, speaking of his unborn grandson, "Raise him a if you want, raise him a Norman with seven wives, a holy roller, a Seventh-day Adventurer".
The Family Guy tenth season episode "Livin' on a Prayer" makes light of some people's skepticism towards Adventists. Lois Griffin, the mother from the main family in the series, states, "I don't know who's crazier, Christian Scientists or those Seventh-day Adventists." The scene cuts to a scene where one Methodist man explains his faith as a Methodist and another man explains his faith as a Seventh-day Adventist. The second man says the same thing as the first man, except that they go to church on Saturdays instead of Sundays, causing the first man to react in shock.
Girls Season 4 episode "Tad & Loreen & Avi & Shanaz" complains about the bothersome persistence of door-to-door evangelist Adventists, confusing Jehovah's Witnesses with Seventh-day Adventists. The fictional character Avi Mensusen, states, "Shanaz, do we get Watch Tower? It's those annoying Seventh-day Adventists, again."
[[The Leftovers (TV series)|''The Leftovers]] first episode of Season 3 there are some strong references to the event of the Great Disappointment. The intro is set back in the 19th century of America, showing a small family giving away their possessions, a group of people waiting for something on top of roofs and a congregation where someone is preaching about an event that will occur later in 1844. The event is strongly suggested to be the second coming of Jesus.