How to write the Dumb Character
Sometimes, dumb characters are iconic, fun, and memorable. And sometimes… well, sometimes we get characters like Jar Jar Binks. So how do you give your audience a character that’s dumb enough to be funny, but not annoying? Here’s a quick guide to get you started.
The dumb character in your story will typically serve as the comic relief. This means they have to be a clever kind of funny, not just clueless. Your audience is not likely to laugh if most of the character’s personality is them not knowing what’s going on.
Think about it. In the sitcom The Good Place, created by Michael Schur, Jason Mendoza is obviously written to be the idiot of the group, but he’s entertaining. Why? Because he has personality. Jason is a wild card, and will blow up anything as an escape route. He’s a criminal, a DJ, and a dancer, but he also can form deep connections with people he cares about. If he didn’t care, or have any interests, the audience wouldn’t see an intriguing character, they’d see a blob with no personality and no brain. Jason has both, he just doesn’t always put the latter to good use, which is what makes him entertaining.
Another trait that may win the reader’s heart is effort. Your character should show effort towards some kind of goal. Even dumb people have dreams, and aspirations. For Soos, from the show Gravity Falls, it was becoming like Grunkle Stan. For Olaf, from Frozen, it was experiencing summer. This is required for any character, really, but some writers forget that dumb characters require just as much attention as every other character in their story. Similarly, your character should be good at something. Even if it’s one thing, it will work. In Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Drax and Groot may not be the smartest characters, but they are the muscle. Jason Mendoza is great at dancing, and Soos is the handyman of the Mystery Shack. It makes it a little less tragic if our clueless comic relief can’t count, but can certainly bake like nobody’s business.
Don’t forget — things that make us laugh are almost always unexpected. An unexpected twist in someone’s words or actions can get a few spit takes. Patrick Star isn’t the best written dumb character, but he does get a few funny lines. One of the best is when he answers the phone at the Crusty Crab, and when he answers, someone asks, “Is this the Crusty Crab?” and he replies, “No, this is Patrick”. As someone who doesn’t actively watch the show, I didn’t expect this, and actually snorted. Sometimes you can just take a smart-alec answer to something and turn it dumb by removing the sarcasm.
Last but not least, dumb characters can go a long way with just confidence. If Thomas is constantly apologizing for his misunderstandings, we’ll only get annoyed. However, if Thomas assumes with full confidence that Charlee was talking to him when she asked George to the dance, he’ll say “Yes!” loudly, pick her up, and spin her around with joy. Had he double checked who she was directing the question to, it would have simply been an awkward situation. Much less embarrassing, and much less entertaining.
Remember- Personality, effort, surprise, and confidence. Please don’t write a character like Hei Hei the rooster from Moana, who just behaves like a poorly trained robot.
