As an acting coach, it’s great when you can offer an actor a quick tip or bit of advice that makes their job easier and a career more accessible right away. Sometimes though, a close inspection of the marketplace and some nuanced thought about what’s working and what isn’t wins the day.
You may not have realized it, but virtually all the comedies that have lasted two to four seasons feature either narcissists or buffoons in leading roles. In contrast, the comedy pilots that made it to air in the last few years and didn’t feature buffoons or narcissists, didn’t last. It’s worth noting.
To illustrate, the sitcoms from all previous decades featured anchors, dreamers, and neurotics as lead archetypes. They were generally grounded, hopeful, book smart or street smart, responsible, and charming, with some insecurity and desperation thrown into the mix.
They were relatable and had an everyman quality to them. Roseanne and Seinfeld were anchors on their shows. Lucy (Lucille Ball) was a dreamer on “I Love Lucy,” as was Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) on “30 Rock” and Ray (Ray Romano) on “Everybody Loves Raymond.” Ross and Monica (David Schwimmer and
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