32 Fictional TV Hosts We Wish Were Real

As a student of journalism, a lifelong avid TV watcher, and a fan of late-night TV hosts, I have always been fascinated by the way television personalities are depicted in fiction. Sometimes these characters represent the best that the media can offer, while others serve as a mockery of the profession. Either way, I can’t get enough of them, and these are some of my favorites.

Ron Burgundy (Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy)

Most would agree that the best Will Ferrell character has to be the title role of his 2004 favorite, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. The former SNL star actually gave the world a taste of what it would be like if the charismatic, scotch-loving teleprompter loyalist were a real person when he hosted The Ron Burgundy Podcast.

Deborah Vance (Hacks)

Jean Smart has won multiple Emmys for her role in the HBO Max original comedy series, Hacks, as Deborah Vance, the host of Late Night and a hilarious, pitch-perfect representation of the business' intense, cutthroat nature.

Alan Partridge (Various)

Steve Coogan has portrayed Alan Partridge, the uproariously inept British TV personality he created with Armando Iannucci, in various projects. He debuted on the BBC radio program On the Hour, received his own mockumentary-style chat show Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge, led a sitcom called I'm Alan Partridge, and was the focus of a 2013 feature film called Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, in which he is forced to be a hostage negotiator.

Murphy Brown (Murphy Brown)

The eponymous lead character from the long-running, beloved sitcom, Murphy Brown, is not only one of multi-Emmy-winning Candice Bergen's most iconic characters, but one of the most influential fictional female figures in news media, depicted as a trailblazer in her profession.

Howard Beale (Network)

Originally released in 1976, Network remains a disturbingly relevant commentary on news media and society in general, with much credit due to Peter Finch's bold, Oscar-winning performance as Howard Beale. That being said, you rarely hear of a broadcast journalist being as boldly direct and brutally honest about their feelings as he is these days.

Gale Weathers (Scream)

In 1996's slasher movie favorite, Scream, Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) was your typical sleazy, self-serving gossip reporter, but would slowly evolve into a professional with some tact in the sequels. Not to mention, few people in her field can claim to have the kind of first-hand experience with the deadly topics she discusses, having survived several Ghostface killers over the years.

Wayne Campbell And Garth Algar (Wayne's World)

Local cable access television had never been as cool (or cool at all, really) before Mike Myers and Dana Carvey debuted as Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar, who later became the stars of two beloved movies based on the Saturday Night Live sketch from which they originated.

Sue Ann Nivens (The Mary Tyler Moore Show)

Betty White was brilliant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Sue Ann Nivens, balancing her perky, kindly on-camera persona as host of The Happy Homemaker with her vindictive and highly competitive off-screen personality with incredible ease.

Robin Scherbatsky (How I Met Your Mother)

Robin Scherbatsky, How I Met Your Mother cast member Cobie Smulders' role on the hit sitcom, is a real go-getter in the world of broadcast journalism. She always opted to put her career before everything else, even if it cost her a few chances in the department of romance. At least, that was the case in earlier seasons.

Larry Sanders (The Larry Sanders Show)

During its run from 1992 to 1998 on HBO, few comedy series had a sharper satirical outlook on show business than the Emmy-winning The Larry Sanders Show. Co-creator Garry Shandling starred as the titular late-night talk show host, who is constantly at odds with behind-the-scenes shenanigans courtesy of staff members and celebrities playing wild versions of themselves.

Murray Franklin (Joker)

It is fitting that Robert De Niro stars in a DC Comics adaptation that heavily borrows from some of his grittiest roles, especially Taxi Driver's Travis Bickle. The acting legend appears in 2019's Joker opposite Joaquin Phoenix's Academy Award-winning role of Arthur Fleck as Murray Franklin, the host of the Gotham-based late-night program, Live!, who might not have survived the airwaves today with his meanspiritedness. Yet, I can't help but respect his bold approach to humor and showcasing risque topics.

Kent Brockman (The Simpsons)

One of Harry Shearer's funniest characters on The Simpsons is Kent Brockman, a Springfield-based TV editorialist who has no filter when it comes to sounding off his typically judgmental opinions.

Veronica Corningstone (Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy)

If Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy actually was inspired by a true story, as it (sort of) claims at the very beginning, Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) would have undoubtedly gone down in history as one of the most important figures of women's progress in the world of broadcast news.

Jack Delroy (Late Night With The Devil)

David Dastmalchian gives one of his career-best performances as infamous TV legend Jack Delroy, who has a life-changing brush with the supernatural in Late Night with the Devil. I imagine I would have been a fan of the Nite Owls host, at least right up until the night he brings his program to a screeching halt by conjuring a demonic spirit during a live broadcast on Halloween 1977.

Damon Killian (The Running Man)

I believe the eponymous, deadly reality competition show from the 1987 adaptation of Stephen King's dystopian novel, The Running Man, is abhorrent, and I pray it never becomes a reality. However, one thing I can commend it for is hiring a host as charismatic and enthusiastic as Damon Killian, played by former Family Feud emcee Richard Dawson.

Will McAvoy (The Newsroom)

Jeff Daniels' Emmy-winning role as Will McAvoy on creator Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom had the courage to call out dishonesty and corruption when few others would dare, which is a quality more TV journalists in the real world could certainly benefit from.

Enid "The Church Lady" Strict (Saturday Night Live)

Dana Carvey is the actor behind a few of the funniest recurring Saturday Night Live characters, including, arguably, his signature role as Enid "The Church Lady" Strict. No matter how many times she uttered her signature catchphrases, the host of a faith-based talk show called Church Chat, which was mainly devoted to accusing her guests of worshipping Satan, was always a joy to laugh at, which certainly makes her "special."

Space Ghost (Space Ghost Coast To Coast)

Making a relatively obscure Hanna-Barbera cartoon character the host of his own talk show, featuring real-life celebrity guests, is a pretty random idea, I will admit. That being said, how cool would it be if a superhero actually did broadcast a talk show from outer space, like on Space Ghost Coast to Coast?

Katherine Newbury (Late Night)

The 2019 comedy film Late Night takes audiences behind the scenes of the world of late-night TV, focusing on the unlikely bond between the eponymous host of Tonight with Katherine Newbury, played by Emma Thompson, and one of her writers, Molly Patel (Mindy Kaling).

Perd Hapley (Parks And Recreation)

A Parks and Recreation side character whom I cannot get enough of is Perd Hapley (Jay Jackson), the host of the brilliantly titled program, Ya Heard? with Perd. I would watch the Pawnee, Indiana-based, hilariously matter-of-fact broadcaster religiously if his show were real.

Gordon Deitrich (V For Vendetta)

The 2005 adaptation of legendary comic book writer Alan Moore's dystopian graphic novel, V for Vendetta, is a deeply bleak story, but it does manage to maintain a few glimmers of hope in the form of characters like Gordon Deitrich. The comedian, played by Stephen Fry, is literally murdered for his willingness to mock the United Kingdom's fascist leader, Adam Sutler (John Hurt), on his satirical program.

Alex Levy (The Morning Show)

Jennifer Aniston would not be who she is if not for her role in the Friends cast as Rachel Green, but the actor has never quite given a performance as powerful as that of Alex Levy on the acclaimed Apple TV+ original TV show, The Morning Show. The consummate professional makes it a personal goal of hers to maintain control of the eponymous news program she has anchored for years when her share of the power over it begins to fall through the cracks.

Pat Dubek (The Other Two)

Molly Shannon's character on the Emmy-nominated Comedy Central series, The Other Two, makes her show, Pat! The Pat Dubek Show, a memorable experience with her endlessly upbeat demeanor and willingness to take phone calls from her children, including her world-famous pop star son, while on the air.

Tom Jumbo-Grumbo (Bojack Horseman)

One of the key elements that makes Netflix's show business satire Bojack Horseman one of the best animated TV shows of all time is the incredible line-up of surprising talents in the voice cast. For instance, former MSNBC commentator Keith Olbermann lends his voice to several episodes as a talking, anthropomorphic whale named Tom Jumbo-Grumbo, who is a host for the network MSNBSea.

Diondre Cole (Saturday Night Live)

There are many celebrities who have a good reason to be annoyed by Diondre Cole, the host of a unique BET discussion program called What Up With That?, especially former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham (portrayed by Bill Hader). However, I personally cannot get enough of Kenan Thompson's hilarious recurring Saturday Night Live character and his unparalleled energy, no matter how terribly he struggles to conduct an interview without rudely interrupting his guests with another banging jam session.

Danny Tanner And Rebecca Donaldson (Full House)

At the beginning of the long-running family sitcom Full House, Bob Saget's character, widowed single father Danny Tanner, was introduced as a TV news reporter. In later seasons, he becomes the co-host of a local morning talk show called Wake Up, San Francisco, alongside Rebecca Donaldson (Lori Loughlin), who would eventually become his housemate when she marries his brother-in-law, Jesse (John Stamos).

George Papadopolis (Webster)

Alex Karras' character from the hit sitcom, Webster, in which he and his wife, Katherine (Susan Clark), become the guardians to their young godson (played by Emmanuel Lewis), must not have been much of a challenge for him to portray. Much like Karras himself, George Papadopolis was a former professional football player who went on to have a career in broadcasting.

Andy "Johnny Karate" Dwyer (Parks And Recreation)

In later seasons of NBC's beloved mockumentary sitcom, Parks and Recreation, Chris Pratt's character, Andy, becomes the host of his own children's program. His alter ego, Johnny Karate, is someone I think I would have loved to grow up with, and I probably would have shown him to my children as well.

Franklin Montague (Atlanta)

One of the best episodes of Atlanta, the clever, experimental, Emmy-winning "B.A.N.," is structured to appear as a snippet of programming from the eponymous network with a focus on Black audiences. Alano Miller guest stars as Franklin Montague, the host of his own self-titled talk show on B.A.N., who is clearly guilty of baiting his guests with combative rhetoric, but at least he manages to keep his show interesting.

Wally Sparks (Meet Wally Sparks)

While 1997's Meet Wally Sparks is widely considered to be one of the weaker of comedian Rodney Dangerfield's films, it is still a Rodney Dangerfield movie, after all. If the title character, a veteran tabloid television reporter, were real, I have no doubt that I would tune into his program on a regular basis just to hear him tell one of his priceless one-liners.

Betty Caruso And Jodi Deltz (Saturday Night Live)

One of the funniest catchphrases from Saturday Night Live comes from Maya Rudolph as Jodi Deitz, who often complains about her husband's frequent tendencies for moronic behavior, only to tearfully proclaim, "But I love him!" In fact, Jodi's husband is one of various recurring topics that she and fellow New York housewife Betty Caruso (Amy Poehler) like to boisterously sound off on as the co-hosts of a local talk show called Bronx Beat.

Dave Skylark (The Interview)

James Franco gives one of the funniest performances of his career in directors Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's 2014 comedy, The Interview, as Dave Skylark, who discovers that he is the favorite TV personality of none other than Kim Jong-Un (Randall Park). Little does the leader of North Korea know, however, that, after he invites the talk show host and his producer (played by Rogen) to visit his home, the CIA has recruited them to help carry out his assassination.