Help or hinder the lead.

Does your character help or hinder the lead?

If a character played by a leading actor such as Harrison Ford is seeking to get on a plane so he can rescue his daughter from threatened death then the character playing the ticket agent must either be helping the Ford character get on the plane or blocking him from getting on.

Certain roles can be categorized as either helping or hindering the lead.

Next time you get a script ask yourself that question. It’s a small, lovely, important point to clarify.

If there is no space on the plane and Ford is demanding, cajoling, or threatening to get on the plane and you’re the ticket agent saying, ‘Sorry Sir, there are no seats left.’ Your role is crucial. You’re the obstacle for him to overcome.

If, on the other hand, there are no seats on the plane, but you devise a way to get him on the plane, then you become equally important. An important helper.

In one scenario you hinder and in the other you help. Both roles are day players – and crucial.

You really do support the lead when you fulfil your job as written in the movie. 

The Harrison Fords appreciate it.