Character list
Gunther, Newman, and more: the best sitcom side characters
Some of the most quoted people in sitcom history were never in the opening credits. Gunther pouring coffee behind the Central Perk counter, Newman glaring at Jerry from down the hall, and Doug Judy talking his way out of yet another arrest all earned their laughs in a handful of scenes per season.
This list gathers every recurring character in the library, the ones who were never part of the main cast, grouped by show so you can find your favorite fast. Further down are the scene stealers who made the opening credits but still live at the edge of the story. Each name links to a full guide with the actor, their first episode, and the episodes where they shine.
17 characters on this list, plus 12 main-cast scene stealers.
Seinfeld(6)
NBC, 1989 to 1998
- Frank CostanzaSide characterPlayed by John Randolph and Jerry StillerGeorge's explosive, eccentric father, a short-fused former Army cook who invented the holiday Festivus and shouts "Serenity now!" to keep his blood…
- NewmanSide characterPlayed by Wayne KnightJerry's smug, scheming nemesis down the hall, a mail carrier and Kramer's partner in crime whose every arrival is greeted with a frosty "Hello…
- The Soup NaziSide characterPlayed by Larry ThomasYev Kassem, the brilliant and tyrannical soup chef whose strict ordering rules and instant bans gave Seinfeld one of its most famous lines…
- David PuddySide characterPlayed by Patrick WarburtonElaine's deadpan, on-and-off boyfriend, a square-jawed mechanic turned car salesman who paints his face for the New Jersey Devils and answers almost…
- Estelle CostanzaSide characterPlayed by Estelle HarrisGeorge's shrill, melodramatic mother, who squabbles nonstop with her husband Frank, nags George about everything…
- J. PetermanSide characterPlayed by John O'HurleyElaine's grandly eccentric boss at the J. Peterman clothing catalog, a world-traveling adventurer who narrates his own life like an old radio drama.
Frasier(1)
NBC, 1993 to 2004
Friends(5)
NBC, 1994 to 2004
- GuntherSide characterPlayed by James Michael TylerThe bleach-blond, deadpan manager of Central Perk, who serves the gang their coffee for ten seasons while quietly nursing an unrequited crush on…
- JaniceSide characterPlayed by Maggie WheelerChandler's loud, nasal, impossible-to-shake ex-girlfriend, famous for her machine-gun laugh and her trademark greeting…
- Mike HanniganSide characterPlayed by Paul RuddThe easygoing former lawyer turned piano player who meets Phoebe Buffay on a last-minute blind date arranged by Joey and becomes the man she marries…
- Carol WillickSide characterPlayed by Anita Barone and Jane SibbettRoss Geller's first wife, who leaves him after realizing she is a lesbian, then has his son, Ben, and raises him with her partner, Susan…
- Richard BurkeSide characterPlayed by Tom SelleckThe handsome, mustached ophthalmologist and old friend of the Geller family who falls for Monica despite their 21-year age gap…
How I Met Your Mother(1)
CBS, 2005 to 2014
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia(1)
FX, 2005 to present
Parks and Recreation(1)
NBC, 2009 to 2015
Brooklyn Nine-Nine(2)
FOX, 2013 to 2021
- Doug JudySide characterPlayed by Craig RobinsonThe smooth, charming, pop-culture-loving car thief known as the Pontiac Bandit, Jake Peralta's slippery arch-nemesis who keeps escaping him and…
- Kevin CoznerSide characterPlayed by Marc Evan JacksonCaptain Holt's husband, a precise and wonderfully dry Columbia classics professor who is just as formal and private as Holt…
Scene stealers in the main cast(12)
Creed Bratton, Hitchcock and Scully, Jerry Gergich, and the rest of this group are credited as main cast (so the game's Role clue shows them as Main), but they rarely get the A story. Fans still think of them as side characters, and they are often the funniest people in the room.
- Leon BlackMain castCurb Your EnthusiasmPlayed by J. B. SmooveThe brash, fearless houseguest who moves in with Larry David alongside a family displaced by a hurricane, never leaves…
- The JanitorMain castScrubsPlayed by Neil FlynnSacred Heart Hospital's nameless, scheming custodian, who declares war on J.D. over a penny jammed in a door on his first day and spends eight…
- Creed BrattonMain castThe OfficePlayed by Creed BrattonThe mysterious, elderly quality assurance man at Dunder Mifflin Scranton, a former 1960s rocker with a foggy memory, a shady past…
- Kevin MaloneMain castThe OfficePlayed by Brian BaumgartnerThe lovable, slow-talking accountant at Dunder Mifflin Scranton who loves food, plays in a Police tribute band…
- Meredith PalmerMain castThe OfficePlayed by Kate FlanneryThe hard-partying supplier relations representative at Dunder Mifflin Scranton, a frank, fearless single mom whose drinking, flings…
- Stanley HudsonMain castThe OfficePlayed by Leslie David BakerThe grumpy veteran salesman at Dunder Mifflin Scranton who does his crossword through every meeting, counts the days to retirement…
- Toby FlendersonMain castThe OfficePlayed by Paul LiebersteinThe mild-mannered, sad-eyed human resources representative at Dunder Mifflin Scranton, whose only crime is enforcing the rules…
- Donna MeagleMain castParks and RecreationPlayed by RettaThe supremely confident, glamorous, and mysterious office manager of the Pawnee parks department, who loves her Mercedes…
- Jerry GergichMain castParks and RecreationPlayed by Jim O'HeirThe sweet, clumsy, endlessly mocked veteran of the Pawnee parks department, whose coworkers never stop teasing him even though he quietly has the…
- Ben ChangMain castCommunityPlayed by Ken JeongGreendale's wildly unstable Spanish teacher, a theatrical, short-fused man who spends six seasons trying, in increasingly strange ways…
- Michael HitchcockMain castBrooklyn Nine-NinePlayed by Dirk BlockerThe lazy, crude, and gleefully clueless veteran detective of the 99th Precinct and Norm Scully's inseparable partner…
- Norm ScullyMain castBrooklyn Nine-NinePlayed by Joel McKinnon MillerThe sweet, sleepy, endlessly ailing veteran detective of the 99th Precinct and Hitchcock's lifelong partner…
More character lists
Character lists
By show
- I Love Lucy
- M*A*S*H
- Happy Days
- Cheers
- The Golden Girls
- Full House
- Seinfeld
- Family Matters
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
- Frasier
- Friends
- Everybody Loves Raymond
- That '70s Show
- Malcolm in the Middle
- Curb Your Enthusiasm
- Scrubs
- Arrested Development
- The Office
- How I Met Your Mother
- It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
- 30 Rock
- The Big Bang Theory
- Parks and Recreation
- Modern Family
- Community
- New Girl
- Brooklyn Nine-Nine
- Schitt's Creek
- Superstore
- The Good Place
- What We Do in the Shadows
- Ted Lasso
- Abbott Elementary
- Home Improvement