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Creators

How to Write a Sitcom: From Creating a

Concept to Finishing Your Script (and
Making It Funny)
BY JASON HELLERMAN | LAST UPDATED: OCTOBER 27, 2023

Photo Source: “It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia” Courtesy FX

Like film, television comes in a variety of different genres— but the two core types are drama
and comedy. Though this has been changing recently, most dramas, whether “prestige” or
“procedural,” have historically been an hour long. Comedy, meanwhile, was always a half-
hour. And throughout the history of television, the most important form of comedy on
television has been the sitcom.

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 What is a sitcom?
How to write a sitcom
CONTENT FOR: How toBrands
Actors + Performers make+ Creatives
your sitcom script funny
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What is a sitcom?

“Abbott Elementary” Credit: ABC/Gil es Mingasson

Sitcoms have been a staple in television since its inception. The name is a portmanteau for
situational comedy, which gives you a clue about its format. What differentiates a sitcom
from other styles of comedy, such as sketch or standup, is a fixed set of characters, minimal
locations, and situations driving the plot and the jokes.
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In the early days of TV, sitcoms generally focused on family dynamics. When sitcoms really
caught their stride in the 1950s, most centered around husbands and wives or families with
young kids—shows like “The Honeymooners,” “I Love Lucy,” and “Leave It to Beaver.”
Beginning in the 1970s, sitcoms became an outlet for challenging societal norms. Series like
“All in the Family,” “Maude,” and “The Jeffersons” broke ground by discussing race, women’s
liberation, class, and sexuality.
Not CONTENT
long thereafter,
FOR: Actorssitcoms movedBrands
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Creativesof employment—these are knownShow
Creators Crew Voiceover as more
workplace comedies. Here, the situations are derived less from family dynamics and more
from the interactions between co-workers or the specific needs of a job. Well-known
workplace comedies include “Taxi,” “Cheers,” “Alice,” and “The Office.”
Another common sitcom subgenre replaces the family dynamic with a group of friends. These
stories are often focused on common life events for those in their 20s and 30s—dating, living
with roommates, and career struggles—as seen on “Seinfeld,” “Friends,” “Happy Endings,” and
“New Girl.”
Beyond stories and characters, the format of the situational comedy has evolved over time,
too. For the majority of its history, the sitcom used a multicamera setup, which means several
cameras are positioned at different angles while the actors perform a scene (often in front of
a live audience). However, in the 2000s, the single-camera comedy rose to prominence. These
are produced on closed, audience-free sets to promote a sense of realism—think shows like
“Black-ish,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and “Veep.”
Over the last three decades, animation has also become a popular choice for sitcoms, thanks
to the popularity of shows like “The Simpsons,” “Family Guy,” “South Park,” and “Bob’s
Burgers.”
Simply put: sitcoms have a long, complex history, and the first step to creating your own is
absorbing (and appreciating) all of it. “There’s a lot of shit out there on TikTok, Instagram, and
YouTube—quick ways to the top. But a healthy knowledge of the craft you’re pursuing is so
valuable, even if you’re super talented,” says “Abbott Elementary” creator and star Quinta
Brunson. “You can be so talented, but knowing the history of the thing—going back and
studying Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin and following every avenue of comedy—is so
helpful in making work that will last.”
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How to write a sitcom

 CONTENT FOR: Actors + Performers Brands + Creatives Creators Crew Voiceover Show more

“Seinfeld” Courtesy NBC

Do your research
When you’re just starting out, watch and study the scripts of your favorite sitcom episodes,
paying attention to the structure. “When I first wrote a spec script of an existing show, I
watched the series kind of on a loop, getting the rhythm of it in my head and the character
voices down,” says writer David Cryan (“The Simpsons”).
“A lot of it is, honestly, trial and error,” says writer Achilles Stamatelaky (“Broad City”). “But,
personally, I did two things: I read a lot of books [and] just nerded out on story structure. And
then I would just read screenplays, I would read TV scripts—just exposing myself to a lot of the
stuff that I wanted to make.”
Learn different types of comedy
Stamatelaky, who trained and performed with the Upright Citizens Brigade before becoming
a writer, calls that experience “really important.”
When he teaches writing, Stamatelaky encourages his students to also try sketch and improv
comedy. “It does widen your skill set…to problem solve when you are writing,” he says. “And it
kind of gives you that foundation and perspective on your writing. So, for example, having had
a performance background before getting into writing, that made me realize, Oh, people
have to say these words.”
Related

Everything You Need To Know About Improv

Create a concept and write a pilot
A solid sitcom premise is something that can generate multiple storylines over 100-plus
episodes. The truth is, studio executives considering new shows think of one thing:ShowHowmorecan
this CONTENT
show make
FOR: money? The answerBrands
Actors + Performers is longevity.
+ Creatives Creators Crew Voiceover

Look at some of the common sitcom character tropes to help you with a starting point. Then,
flesh them out in your own style to make them unique, current, and memorable. Here are
some common sitcom tropes for characters, plots, and settings.
Character Tropes
“New Person in Town”: One way to bring the audience into your world is making one of your
main characters a new member of a previously established group. Examples: Diane (“Cheers”),
Jess (“New Girl”), Robin (“How I Met Your Mother”)
Bumbling Dad: Though well-meaning and a hard worker (often employed in a blue-collar job),
the Bumbling Dad isn’t the brightest bulb in the family. Not hip to social norms, he often puts
his foot in his mouth and learns some kind of lesson by the end of the episode. Examples:
Homer Simpson (“The Simpsons”), Tim Taylor (“Home Improvement”)
Obnoxious In-Laws: Usually recurring characters, they pop in every so often to annoy the
protagonist(s). They are often disapproving of the main characters’ relationship. Examples:
Maggie’s father (“Growing Pains”), Ray’s parents (“Everybody Loves Raymond”)
Drop-In Character: This is often a neighbor or a distant relative who lives in town and serves
as comic relief. Mostly intended to be an occasional nuisance to our protagonists, they
sometimes steal the show and get elevated to primary character status. Examples: Steve
Urkel (“Family Matters”), Cousin Cody (“Step by Step”)
Plot Tropes
Will They/Won’t They: This is a classic storyline for two major leads. They begin the series
either as antagonists or friends who are afraid to change their relationship, but they can’t
help but admit that they’re in love and end up together. Examples: Sam and Diane (“Cheers”),
Jim and Pam (“The Office”), Janine and Gregory (“Abbott Elementary”)
Escalating War: A minor offense between two characters blows up, shaking the foundation of
the central group. Usually, a game of one-upmanship ensues with hilarious results. Examples:
the “Friends” episode “The One in Vegas,” the “Community” episode “Cooperative
Calligraphy”
Two Dates: A character ends up booking multiple dates on the same evening. Instead of
rescheduling, they try to pull a fast one and go on both at the same time. Examples: the
“Cheers” episode “Cliffie’s Big Score,” the “Family Ties” episode “Double Date”
Common Sitcom Settings
Bar or Restaurant: Every good friend group needs a place to hang out that isn’t home.
Examples: Central Perk (“Friends”), Monk’s Café (“Seinfeld”).
“Affordable” Apartment: Many sitcoms take place in big cities like New York City or Chicago.
Some of the main characters live together and can somehow afford a large apartment that
would be wildly expensive in real life, despite having relatively low-paying jobs. Or, in Kramer’s
case, no real job. Examples: “Seinfeld,” “Friends,” “Community”
Sitcom pilots don’t entirely have the same goals as hour-long drama pilots. Yes, you will need
to introduce your characters, but there is less focus on establishing a definitive beginning
point to a larger storyline, as in “Breaking Bad” or “Game of Thrones.” The important task is to
makeCONTENT
your FOR:
characters
Actors +seem like people
Performers Brands the audienceCreators
+ Creatives will wantCrewto hang out with, inShow
Voiceover anymore
situation, for a long time.
But remember: Your plot still needs to have conflict, and your characters need to have a want
and obstacles getting in their way. The differences in comedy are that the stakes are lower
and characters develop more slowly than in drama. You’ll want characters to change over
time, but not too much.
Start writing your sitcom script
Unlike an hour-long drama series, which contains a teaser and four or five acts, a sitcom
generally follows a three-act structure—though some shows only use two acts.
Here’s a typical sitcom structure:
Cold open: A quick scene before the opening credits. This can be connected to the main story
of the episode or be a funny non sequitur. The point is to grab the audience’s attention
immediately.
Act 1: Introduce our characters and establish the situation they will face. Subplots (your B and
C storylines) will also be set up in Act 1.
Act 2: Your characters try to solve the problem that arose in Act 1, or they set about trying to
obtain their want and obstacles get in their way. Either way, they’re unable to achieve victory
just yet.
Act 3: Resolution. Your characters overcome their obstacles and the status quo returns. (More
on that later.
TAG: Similar to a cold open, this is a final scene to give your audience one last laugh. Not all
shows employ a tag.
Related

Screenplay Format 101: How to Write a Script Like a Pro

Scripts vary in length, but keep in mind that the vast majority of sitcom episodes are a half-
hour long—that’s really 22 minutes, if it’s a network show with commercials. With that in
mind, aim for 22–30 pages. “When you only have 22 minutes or a half-hour, your time is so
incredibly limited,” says Cryan. “It's really good, for me at least, to know exactly where I'm
going, because you run out of space for your story very quickly. Really knowing what story
points you’re hitting in each scene was very helpful before I started to write.”
Again, making sitcom structure second nature goes a long way. “I need the commercial
breaks,” Brunson says, “because 22 minutes is very different from 30 minutes. People don’t
think that, but it is. Those eight extra minutes can almost undo the good that 22 minutes
does.”
EvenCONTENT
if yourFOR:goalActors
is to write for a commercial-free
+ Performers Brands + Creatives streaming
Creators network like Netflix, Show
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moreto
understand classic sitcom structure. “Having in mind where your act break would be is
incredibly helpful, in terms of the flow of the script and the story,” says Cryan. “It’s an
incredibly useful guidepost.”
Once your first draft is done, give it to some friends for notes. Then, do a rewrite. Then, do
another. Rework the characters a little. Punch up your jokes. There’s an old adage that says
“writing is rewriting.” Trust us, it’ll be worth it once you have a solid sitcom script!
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How to make your sitcom script funny

“Community” Courtesy NBC

Sitcoms need jokes. After all, it’s a comedy. The rule of thumb is “three jokes per page”—if
one page is about one minute of your episode, that means you’re aiming for three laughs a
minute.
But where do those laughs come from? It always helps to return to the list of tropes;
familiarity creates comfort for the audience, which makes the laughs come easier. Of course,
you should study the art of writing a joke and comedic timing. “[In] a great joke, there's always
a surprise element involved,” says Stamatelaky. “You're setting up an expectation from the
audience and then you're finding some sort of twist or fun insight.”
But for sitcoms, specifically, the answer is right in the name—the laughs have to come from
the situations. “I do approach it from a story structure perspective first, and then trust the
jokes and the funny characters will come through if the story is really, really solid,” says
Stamatelaky. “In professional writers' rooms, that's usually the approach: having a really
strong foundation of a story first and then finding the funny in that.”
Cryan agrees. “I can always go back in subsequent drafts and, if the story is working, add
more jokes,” he says.
 Writing a sitcom joke is different from just writing a joke, where “you’re coming up with the
funny idea first,” says Stamatelaky. “In sitcom writing, you see what the story is calling for and
then have the characters react to that.”
CONTENT FOR: Actors + Performers Brands + Creatives Creators Crew Voiceover Show more
“So the joke is less [like], Oh, that’s a funny line that they said, and often it's more something
that they're reacting to within the scene. The best sitcoms always do that, where the story
drives the jokes that happen from scene to scene, versus characters just arbitrarily joking
their way through this story.”
We’ve mentioned sitcom formulas and tropes as tools that you can use as you develop your
own sitcom. You might be thinking to yourself, Well, these are just clichés, or If these are so
similar, how can there have been so many popular shows throughout the years?
The short answer is it’s about the writing. Sitcoms that go on for years do so because the
writing is tight, nuanced, and hilarious. And just as important, the writers know how to tap
into their cast’s unique talents to create something memorable.
Now, it’s your turn! Hop on Final Draft and get writing.
Please note, Final Draft is a Backstage sister company.
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