Von Zimmel's lines, 'Hath not a Nazi eyes? Hath not a Nazi hands? .... If you prick us, do we not bleed?..,' are a parody of Shylock's speech from 'The Merchant of Venice,' by William Shakespeare (Act III, Scene I).

The scene in the stairs of the Corcovado statue, where Jean Dujardin faces his fear of heights, is a tribute to the similar and iconic scene in Vertigo (1958).

This spy spoof movie, OSS 117: Lost in Rio (2009) is the first sequel and second movie in the new French series of OSS 117 movies, the first being OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies (2006). Interestingly, these two movies utilize the same consecutive settings of Cairo/Egypt and Rio/Brazil as were featured in the consecutive James Bond 1970s spy movies, The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) (Cairo/Egypt) and Moonraker (1979) (Rio/Brazil).

The American Matt Helm spy spoof series of four films is given a nod with the similar art and set direction seen in the furniture set around the swimming pool together with the use of featured songs sung by Dean Martin.

Agent OSS 117 (Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath) wears clothes which are inspired and predominantly the same as Paul Newman's Lew Harper in Harper (1966).