Hit television shows are rare. We have eras of “Peak TV” and everyone remembers NBC’s “Must See TV,” but truly having a show that works worldwide and ages well is very difficult. Especially in comedy. Critics have been saying comedy is too subjective to work well around the world for decades; however, there are prime examples that prove them wrong:
- The Office
- The Nanny
- Married… With Children
- Friends
- Everybody Loves Raymond
- and many, many more
The above shows can be broken down into three buckets: family sitcoms, buddy sitcoms, and workplace sitcoms. This is true for effectively every television comedy in existence as well. There may be a few others, but these three categories house virtually the entirety of television comedy.
While there is often some crossover, especially with long-running series, it’s important to decipher which format is right for your story. Even still…
Creating successful sitcoms that resonate across cultures, demographics, and generations is no small feat. However, history offers valuable lessons, and understanding the nuances of humor and audience preferences can tilt the odds in your favor.
This blog post is designed to go over elements of a good situational comedy and even some things you may never have considered. I’ll throw in some of the research I did to finish up grad school too, so you know this thing is iron-clad. Beyond my own findings, this article includes lessons I learned from colleagues who have written for Curb Your Enthusiasm, Married… With Children, and other successful comedies. In short, this is all coming from a place of experience… and caffeine, if I’m be honest.
Let’s break down the essentials of developing a successful sitcom!
Why Family Sitcoms Rule the World
While the above list of successful sitcoms includes three different formats of comedy, family sitcoms statistically outshine all other television comedies as a whole.
Familiarity of Characters
Historically, family sitcoms have outperformed their friendship- and workplace-based counterparts on the international stage. Why? Because families are the universal truth we can’t escape—and most people have tried. Whether it’s the overbearing parent, the rebellious teenager, or the weird uncle who only shows up at weddings, family dynamics are familiar to everyone.
Cultural Adaptability
Family structures may vary from culture to culture, but the emotions and conflicts within them translate seamlessly. You can plop the premise of Full House in almost any country, tweak the setting, and get a winner. Try doing that with M*A*S*H without tripping over cultural nuances that just don’t land.
Putting theory to the test: Russia has adapted several American sitcoms. Many of which have failed. How I Met Your Mother, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (or, I kid you not, It’s Always Sunny in Moscow), and a few others come to mind. These few are buddy sitcoms; however, one could argue It’s Always Sunny is also a workplace sitcom. As successful as they were domestically, their Russian adaptations pale in comparison to three others: Everybody Loves Raymond, Married… With Children, and The Nanny – each of them, family sitcoms. (I suppose The Nanny also has a blend of workplace comedy in it, but my point remains.) Believe it or not, the adaptation of Married… With Children was so successful, there is a statue of Al Bundy’s Russian counterpart in the village where the adaptation was set!
Understanding Benign Violation Theory
Family dysfunction is great comedic material, but when writing a sitcom, you need to understand the dynamics of a joke on a molecular level. Centuries of work have gone into figuring out what “funny” actually is, and while I could practically teach a college course on this topic, I’ll keep things isolated to the Benign Violation Theory for your sanity’s sake.
The Recipe for Good Comedy
If you want your sitcom to be funny (pro tip: you do), you’ll want to understand the Benign Violation Theory. It’s a fancy term for what makes something humorous—a situation that’s simultaneously wrong and okay. Think about slapstick comedy: someone slipping on a banana peel is funny because it’s unexpected (wrong), but they’re not seriously hurt (okay).
Why It Works Across Cultures
Humor rooted in benign violations transcends cultural barriers. From Charlie Chaplin’s silent antics or Jackie Chan’s martial arts variants of said antics to the absurdity of Friends, the theory explains why certain jokes work universally. The trick? Stay on the “benign” side of the line. Push too far into the “violation” territory, and congratulations, you’ve offended half your audience, which is very easy to do… I’ve been told.
A Humor Theory to Rule Them All
There are, of course, other published humor theories and philosophies of comedy. I would argue that the Benign Violation Theory is actually a more advanced theory that combines more base theories, but I don’t want to over-intellectualize here.
I would argue, though, based on my research, that benign violations are behind most of the jokes you can remember from television shows and movies. As mentioned earlier, Charlie Chaplin and Jackie Chan (not to mention their American counterpart, Buster Keaton) are universally renowned slapstick geniuses, but all their gags break down into benign violations.
We still find those three comedians funny today. The craziest thing is that they were from three different continents, and two of them grew to fame in the early 20th century while the third did toward the end of the century. A quarter into the 21st century, they are still gaining new fans from children watching their works for the first time.
The Role of Conflict in Comedy
Family and benign violations of expectation are one combo that will play a strong role in writing a sitcom, but what makes a family sitcom so… familiar? Tension. Family affairs.
Why Tension Equals Funny
Humor thrives on tension—whether it’s a misunderstanding, a disagreement, or a pie in the face. (Note that each of these would be considered a “violation” in the Benign Violation Theory.) Good comedy builds conflicts that feel real then finds a way to defuse them with humor – enter: the “benign” resolution.
Just remember: No conflict leads to silence. Conflict with no resolution leads to even deeper silence.
How This Applies to Family Sitcoms
Family sitcoms have a built-in conflict generator: family members. Sibling rivalries, generational clashes, and parenting fails are comedy goldmines. The best part? These conflicts rarely feel forced because they’re rooted in universal experiences. Every viewer has a relationship in their family that corresponds to something you’re writing. Keeping that in mind may actually relieve some stress as you write!
Designing Sitcoms That Last
Understanding humor is key to writing good comedy, but an audience needs to watch it, so you want to base things in a reality that is at least relatable to theirs. A sitcom that stands the test of time observes the real world and builds upon it for the sake of the story.
Embrace Evolution
Even the most iconic sitcoms had to evolve. Friends leaned harder into character arcs as it progressed, and The Simpsons embraced social commentary. A sitcom that’s unwilling to adapt is like a flip phone in 2025—it may be quirky and intriguing, but it’s ultimately been done before. Nostalgia’s cool, but it doesn’t win much in screenwriting.
Leave Room for Character Growth
Your characters shouldn’t just survive season after season; they should grow. Audiences connect more deeply with characters who change, whether it’s a self-absorbed dad learning empathy or a clueless sibling finding their purpose. Shrinking and The Bear are great modern examples of this principle.
Writing Sitcoms With Feeling
Great stories have developments in the external world that mirror the characters’ internal worlds. Building dynamic characters who traverse the misadventures in the pseudo-reality of your show will open the doors to exemplary fandom.
Start with Universal Themes
Love, conflict, family, and survival are the pillars of timeless storytelling. Before you dive into the quirks of your characters, make sure your sitcom has a core that your audience can relate to. Yes, even that guy binge-watching your show on the subway with his phone avoiding eye contact with strangers.
Develop Three-Dimensional Characters
Audiences don’t need cookie-cutter heroes; they need characters they can root for—or at least tolerate. Take Modern Family as an example. Its diverse cast includes every archetype imaginable, yet the show remains cohesive because each character represents a piece of someone’s life. Some more than others, sure, but that is a relevant truth and the weights of each character’s relatability will differ between viewer.
Side point: This is true in drama as well. Why would we root for a suburban dad that trades his simple life away to become a meth kingpin while his career change only hurts his family more than it helps? Because he does it in good faith and we relate to him as a family member who will do anything for his loved ones. Chaotic good is the orientation of any lovable anti-hero.
Hook the Audience in Two Minutes
Let’s be real, no one has the patience for a slow burn anymore. Your pilot episode needs to grab attention faster than a toddler with a Sharpie. Establish your tone, premise, and characters within the first 120 seconds (or roughly two pages), or risk becoming background noise while your audience does the dishes.
Fair warning: Two minutes may even be too long. I believe a cold open that bombs will destroy the viewership for the rest of the show. Packing in a few good jokes and as much of a three-dimensional character as possible is tricky but can be done.
Timing Is Everything
Following up on that last point of concise introductions, timing will be a key factor to the success of your show.
Master the Art of Pacing
Comedy is all about timing. Whether it’s the delivery of a punchline or the build-up to a gag, getting the rhythm right can make or break a joke. Watch any classic sitcom, and you’ll notice that the pacing feels almost musical. There truly is a rhythm to good writing.
When Less Is More
In sitcom writing, brevity is your best friend. Keep your dialogue snappy and your jokes concise. If you need three sentences to explain why something is funny, it’s probably not.
So, keeping with the rule of thumb that one page equals about a minute of screen time, I’ve analyzed dozens of comedy scripts, and the average is about two jokes per page. There’s not much space on a page so if you’re going to have roughly twice as many jokes as you do pages in your script, they better be concise.
Another instance of theory executed in reality: I once had a conversation with a producer at the BBC who explained how translating a British show into Khmer, the language spoken in Cambodia, effectively destroyed an adaptation she was working on because there was no direct translation for the word “phone” at the time. Instead, the character called it, “The thing you hold to speak with family members very far away.” Funny to English speakers, but just weird to others.
Work with Us to Create the Next Cultural Sitcom Sensation
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Let’s make your sitcom the next big thing. Contact us today to start developing your pilot that hits all the right notes, makes all the right people laugh, and—most importantly—leaves them wanting more no matter who they are, where they are, or when they are.
Scott Duvall 