We of course have hundreds of films starring characters who are lawyers, singers, doctors, teachers, sports figures, cops, detectives, etc.
Can you think of any profession that has NOT been used for a lead character in a film/TV series?
Define profession. *The Life of Reilly *featured someone who worked on an aircraft assembly line. Does that cover all plant workers on TV? Does *Norma Rae *cover all plant workers on film?
I can’t remember ever seeing anything featuring a metalurgist, actuary, army quartermaster or payroll specialist. For that matter, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an HR rep in a lead role.
Butcher
Baker
Candlestick Maker
Sommelier
Sous-chef
or, if we restrict ourselves to professions that require universtiy exams or earning a License:
Land Surveyor
HVAC engineer (=heating,ventilation and air con)
Agronomist
colonoscopy technician
Sewage treatment plant operator (yes, it requires certification and a license)
The Drew Carey Show
Pushing Daisies
Not specifically about a restaurant sommelier, but Sideways, Bottle Shock, and French Kiss are all about wine/vinyards.
Chef from Apocalypse Now was a saucier.
So I Married an Ax Murderer
The Butcher’s Wife (obviously)
Buffalo Soldiers
Sgt Bilko
Porta-pottie emptier. Is there an actual name for that? We used to call the truck they emptied the stuff into the “honey truck” when at Pennsic.
Ed Norton from The Honeymooners was a sewage worker.
Ready to Rumble staring David Arquet and Scott Caan.
The female lead in the first Highlander movie, IIRC.
Not a lead role, but an important one, Q in the bond movies is Quartermaster.
The wonderful Austrailian independent film Kenny is about an employee of a porta pottie company employee.
Industrial Engineer.
Psychiatrist / Psychologist. It seems the only ‘heroic’ shrink is Doc Samson. (I swear this is a trope, but 1) I’m too lazy to look for it and 2) I’ll spare you the tab explosion that is tvtropes)
The Bob Newhart Show.
Wasn’t the first Bob Newhart series him as a Psychiatrist? When his character was married to Suzanne Pleshette.
ETA ninja’d by hajario
We’re still looking for a film starring someone as an actuary.
Double Indemnity.
Also Huff. And The Sopranos.
I can’t recall ever seeing my profession in a lead role in either TV or film: stagehand.