20 Best Comedy Characters In TV History
Ben Sherlock is a Tomatometer-approved film and TV critic who runs the massively underrated YouTube channel I Got Touched at the Cinema. Before working at Screen Rant, Ben wrote for Game Rant, Taste of Cinema, Comic Book Resources, and BabbleTop. He's also an indie filmmaker, a standup comedian, and an alumnus of the School of Rock.
TV characters are in our homes every week, so we become endeared to them, and they almost feel like a part of the family. That’s what makes television the perfect medium for comedy characters. We’ll be introduced to the hilarious personality of a character like David Brent or Frasier Crane, and find them funny right off the bat. But then, over the years, we’ll get to know the human being underneath their wacky facade.
Some TV comedy characters are there purely for the laughs, like George Costanza, and that can be fun in its own way. But some characters have gone a little deeper and shown real vulnerability, like Alan Partridge or Michael Scott.
20 Principal Ava Coleman
Abbott Elementary
When you think of a career educator, you picture a wonderful, selfless person who’s dedicated themselves to shaping the next generation of minds. But that’s what makes Ava Coleman, the self-obsessed principal of Abbott Elementary, such a hilarious character. She’s a lot more interested in her social media following than her students.
19 Ron Swanson
Parks and Recreation
Ron Swanson might work for the parks department, but he doesn’t believe in government. He’s a libertarian who would gladly tear down the entire system if he could, so he’s a fun character to have in a workplace show about government employees.
Nick Offerman was the breakout star of Parks and Rec. Ron’s deadpan demeanor, his yin-and-yang dynamic with Leslie Knope, and his love of bacon and eggs made him everyone’s favorite character.
18 Rose Nylund
The Golden Girls
Betty White became a beloved icon with her turn as Rose Nylund in The Golden Girls. Everyone in this cast was great, but White was the clear standout. Rose is unwaveringly kind, delightfully naive and innocent, and her rambling stories never fail to get a laugh.
17 Super Hans
Peep Show
Mark and Jez were the stars of Peep Show, but their crack-addled friend Super Hans always stole the spotlight whenever he popped up. Every time Hans opens his mouth, he says something beautifully unhinged and out-of-pocket, and it’s always hilarious.
The earlier seasons wisely used Hans sparingly. The later seasons essentially made Hans the third lead, and while it mostly worked, it did lessen his impact a little bit.
16 Matt Foley
Saturday Night Live
Chris Farley is one of the funniest cast members in SNL history, and he always stole the show no matter what character he was playing. But, by far, the most iconic role he ever played was motivational speaker Matt Foley.
Everything we learned about Matt Foley made him funnier. The juxtaposition of his career, giving advice to young people, and his miserable existence, living in a van down by the river, has provided decades’ worth of laughs.
15 Leon Black
Curb Your Enthusiasm
There are two distinctive eras of Curb Your Enthusiasm: pre- and post-Leon. Before Leon came along, invaded Larry David’s home, and refused to leave, Curb was a very different show.
J.B. Smoove turned out to be the missing ingredient to make TV’s funniest cast even funnier. Leon was the perfect foil for Larry; he’s his exact opposite, so they have totally different experiences of the world, and yet they both look at life through the same unique prism.
14 Moira Rose
Schitt's Creek
The late, great Catherine O’Hara was already a comedy legend before she starred in Schitt’s Creek. But the role of Moira Rose introduced this comedic genius to a whole new generation of fans, and arguably made her more famous than ever.
Moira was once a famous star, but is now a has-been, and the beauty of the character is that she acts as though she’s still famous. Moira is still a star; she’s just waiting for the rest of the world to catch up.
13 Eric Cartman
South Park
South Park didn’t really become South Park until Trey Parker and Matt Stone figured out just how far they could go with the Cartman character. Eric Cartman was conceived as an eight-year-old Archie Bunker — an ignorant bigot in elementary school — but he got even worse as the seasons went on.
Once Cartman had fed Scott Tenorman his own parents in a bowl of chili, Parker and Stone kept doubling down. Cartman became the single most evil, reprehensible character on television, and was all the funnier for it.
12 Dr. Frasier Crane
Cheers, Frasier
Kelsey Grammer has now played Frasier Crane across three different TV shows in four different decades, and he still fits the role like a glove. Frasier is pompous and pedantic and snobbish, but Grammer manages to make him lovable.
The genius of Frasier’s character is that nothing ever works out for him. He might be a self-important academic who thinks he’s better than everyone else, but the joke is always on him.
11 Lucille Bluth
Arrested Development
Lucille Bluth has become the poster child of out-of-touch rich people. Her line about the cost of a banana has become the go-to comparison for any wealthy elitist who tries to wrap their head around the financial realities of the real world.
But the true success of the character is that Jessica Walter made her so lovable. Lucille has no redeeming qualities, and yet we laugh along when she comments on her granddaughter’s body or gets fooled by Gene Parmesan’s latest disguise.
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