Character Development Definition: Tips from Top Screenwriters

Character development is the process of creating fully formed fictional characters. Developed characters have essential characteristics like a name, a physical appearance, specific character traits, and a backstory or character bio. They also have features that make them “come alive,” like well-defined personality traits, strong points of view, focused desires and fears, and a character arc (or a trajectory of change throughout the story).

Good character development is a foundational principle of a compelling piece of writing because it makes audience members root for or despise each character, creating emotional connections and encouraging the audience to keep reading or watching. Some writers use the terms “round character” and “flat character” to describe types of characters with different levels of development—a round character is highly developed, with nuance and layers. In contrast, a flat character feels undeveloped, usually two-dimensional or cliché.

The Duffer Brothers (Matt and Ross Duffer) are the creators, screenwriters, and executive producers of the hit television series Stranger Things. They recommend giving your main characters arcs of progression during the story. An arc is a trajectory of character growth or changes that a character takes by the end of the story. For instance, a hard-boiled detective character may soften throughout the plot, or a frightened character might find courage.

Character arcs help make your story feel emotionally powerful and meaningful for your characters and the audience. However, try to avoid overdoing it. “You can’t give everyone this incredible arc,” Ross explains. If every one of your main and secondary characters changes, your script will start to feel too bulky. Instead, focus on your most pivotal characters, and feel free to let your minor storylines feature a few static characters to make your main arcs shine.

Judd Apatow is a director and producer behind The 40-Year-Old Virgin, The Big Sick, and Girls. He recommends you make characters clash when writing pairs. “The more you flesh out these characters, the more able you are to just let them go at each other,” he says. Not every character pair needs to be best friends—writing characters whose personalities are at odds with one another will result in the funniest or most exciting confrontations.

Issa Rae is the Emmy-nominated writer, actor, and producer of Awkward Black Girl and Insecure. She recommends doing a lot of research—including reading, talking to people, and even including them in your writing process—when writing characters different from you.

“You can’t really be authoritative on someone else’s story without doing so,” Issa says. “Whenever I’m doing [research], I’m constantly asking questions. I’m looking to someone who’s a model and writing with them in mind.”

Director and stand-up comedian Judd recommends starting character intros with a bang. “The best way to have a character be introduced [is to have them be] very strong right off the bat,” Judd says. “If someone arrives, they should be hysterical.” These strong introductions create powerful, memorable scenes, even for characters with small parts.

Issa enjoys watching characters with imperfect lives. She likes to make her characters well-rounded—balancing character strengths with weaknesses—to keep them interesting. “When I think about creating a character, I think about what redeeming qualities they have and the flaws that are getting in the way of what they want,” she says.

“No one wants to watch someone perfect on screen.” — Issa Rae

Shonda Rhimes is the showrunner behind the hit shows Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal. When she crafts characters, she finds the most success in unique details and quirks. “Find something really interesting and specific for your characters,” Shonda explains.

“The more specific you are with your characters, the more defined they become.” — Shonda Rhimes

Avoid relying on shortcuts or clichés. Shonda notes that in television, it seems like “everybody was on the debate team when they were a nerd” because so many writers use the same shortcut. Explore deeper and find out what makes your characters unique, to avoid writing predictable, flat characters.

The Duffer Brothers like to pull inspiration for characters from people they know in their real life. “You want these characters to feel real,” Ross explains. “That can really help flesh a character out … looking at your own life.” As an example of character development from their own life, they explain that they initially based the character of Joyce Byers on their own mom—before the character evolved and took on traits of her own.

James Cameron is the director of such hit films as Aliens, Titanic, and Avatar. When he crafts characters, he likes to think about the problems they’ll face in the story. “Giving … a relatable average person an enormous problem—and seeing how they solve that problem—is a good way to get … the audience to buy into the narrative,” he explains. If you’re feeling stuck, consider the different conflicts that your characters may face.

Shonda recommends thinking consciously about the decisions you make about a character’s identity—including their gender and race. “Somebody will say, ‘Why are all the cops guys?’ and I’ll think, ‘Oh, I hadn’t thought about that, that’s a really great point,’” Shonda explains. She likes this advice from Geena Davis: Take half of the characters you’ve written and change their gender identity or race to see how that changes the story and character depth.

Aaron Sorkin is the screenwriter of The West Wing and The Social Network. He avoids writing long character profiles or filling out a worksheet or template before diving into the story. Instead, he begins writing every character with their intention (the character’s goals) and obstacle (what’s in the way).

“The tactics that the character uses to overcome that obstacle—that’s what the character is going to be.” — Aaron Sorkin

The character’s personality will arise out of the ways that they try to achieve their goals and wrestle with internal conflict rather than the character’s backstory.

James suggests introducing your characters with a powerful image that encapsulates who they are—what he calls a “creative synecdoche.” In Avatar, he introduces the character of Colonel Quaritch with the image of his military boots walking along a steel floor.

“He was a military guy, he was very formal, and he was in a position of command and authority,” James explains. The introduction distilled all of those traits into a clear, memorable image.

Aaron believes that writing doesn’t necessarily have to try to imitate real people or real life. “I know it seems like the goal should be to have a character to be as human as possible … [but] that’s not my goal,” he explains.

Instead, he thinks characters are more entertaining when they act outside of realism—whether in dramatic choices, dialogue, or mannerisms. If you’re struggling with realism, consider trying not for believable characters but memorable characters—follow what seems most interesting to you.

All you need is a MasterClass Annual Membership and our exclusive video lessons from instructors like the Duffer Brothers, Issa Rae, Shonda Rhimes, Spike Lee, David Lynch, and Jodie Foster.