# Re: In TV and movie credits, what do "star," "co-star," "guest star," etc., mean?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports
**Created:** [July 16, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958 "2010-07-16T20:02:48Z")
**Posts on this page:** 17
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@hughh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hughh)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/1 "2010-07-16T20:02:48Z")
What about producers, executive producers and associate producers? Are there other types of producers? What does each of them do?
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### Author:  [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)
#### Post date: [July 16, 2010, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/2 "2010-07-16T20:36:42Z")
Link to the column in question (from 1982): [In TV and movie credits, what do “star,” “co-star,” “guest star,” etc., mean? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/339/in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean)
Related column from 1981: [In movie credits, what are the “gaffer” and the “best boy”? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/330/in-movie-credits-what-are-the-gaffer-and-the-best-boy)
I don’t think anyone knows what producers do.
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### Author:  [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2010, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/3 "2010-07-17T17:44:54Z")
There are several sorts of “producer”.
A) A sort of half executive and half artist who was the top boss. This was the classic meaning of “Producer” in Hollywood, but ever since the director became the big boss in movies, these classic producers have pretty much disappeared. The title of “Executive Producer” was created in the era when they were fading away.
B) The guy in charge of keeping everything running on the production end. Often referred to nowadays as the “Line Producer”.
C) The show runner (the person in ultimate charge of all artistic choices on a TV series) is usually given the title “Producer” or “Executive Producer” nowadays. The title “show runner” is intentionally a little goofy sounding and is intentionally kept off the show credits so that the same thing doesn’t happen to “Show Runner” that happened to “Producer”, because it’s important to have one and only one show runner, so that the series doesn’t become a shambles.
D) A business guy who doesn’t pretend to know much about art, but who’s good at keeping the business end clean so that the creative people won’t be bothered is also an “Executive Producer”.
Other than that, a “producer” or “executive producer” is anyone whose agent insisted on the extra credit.
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### Author:  [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)
#### Post date: [July 17, 2010, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/4 "2010-07-17T21:01:24Z")
ETA: Gaah. I misunderstood the question. I see now that billing for actors was addressed in the linked column. Oh well.
If you see the credit “Starring” on a TV series, it usually refers only to the regulars (actors who appear in every or nearly episode).
Guest stars are actors who play important characters in a particular episode, usually appearing in more than one scene. Co-stars are every other speaking role, usually functionary characters with just a couple of lines who often aren’t even given names in the script, just titles like “Cop 1” or “Doctor 3.”
But there’s no clear bright line between “Guest Star” and “Co-star.” Billing for a role often depends as much on the clout of the actor and agent as on the number of lines.
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### Author:  [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)
#### Post date: [July 18, 2010, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/5 "2010-07-18T08:58:47Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#):
>
> There are several sorts of “producer”.
>
> A) A sort of half executive and half artist who was the top boss. This was the classic meaning of “Producer” in Hollywood, but ever since the director became the big boss in movies, these classic producers have pretty much disappeared. The title of “Executive Producer” was created in the era when they were fading away.
>
> B) The guy in charge of keeping everything running on the production end. Often referred to nowadays as the “Line Producer”.
>
> C) The show runner (the person in ultimate charge of all artistic choices on a TV series) is usually given the title “Producer” or “Executive Producer” nowadays. The title “show runner” is intentionally a little goofy sounding and is intentionally kept off the show credits so that the same thing doesn’t happen to “Show Runner” that happened to “Producer”, because it’s important to have one and only one show runner, so that the series doesn’t become a shambles.
>
> D) A business guy who doesn’t pretend to know much about art, but who’s good at keeping the business end clean so that the creative people won’t be bothered is also an “Executive Producer”.
>
> Other than that, a “producer” or “executive producer” is anyone whose agent insisted on the extra credit.
Can’t it also be anyone who is putting up substantial money for the show? I guess that fits in your last category, but I wanted to cover it.
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### Author:  [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)
#### Post date: [July 18, 2010, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/6 "2010-07-18T14:49:11Z")
> [@hughh](#):
>
> What about producers, executive producers and associate producers? Are there other types of producers? What does each of them do?
All roles, including _star_, _co-star_, _also starring_, and _producer_ are part of extensive contract negotiations. There is sort of a idea what they mean, but it all comes down to ego size and placating those egos. These can be delicate negotiations. Actor “A” and Actor “B” both want to be “stars” and mentioned first, but Actor “A” hates Actor “B” and doesn’t want equal billing with Actor “B”. Sometimes the main actor is billed as the producer or director even if they didn’t really produce or direct anything.
One of the most interesting cases of this was Irwin Allen’s _Lost in Space_. The plot was of a typical American family lost in space fighting evil aliens.
However, the original pilot that showed the Space Family Robinsons getting lost did poorly. It was decided that the main reason was the lack of a good villain. The pilot was reshot with Jonathan Harris as the role of Dr. Zachary Smith acting as a saboteur and accidentally getting stuck on the ship. Also added to the mix was a robot. History was made.
The original idea is that Dr. Smith would get killed off once the show was up and running with actual evil aliens. However, the writers (and the public) loved Dr. Smith so much, it was decided to keep him as a comic element.
The problem was the all the billing was already negotiated – who were the stars, the co-stars, the also starrings, etc. And, most of the rest of the cast grew to hate the character of Dr. Smith. They signed on to do a serious show with a well known science fiction producer (Irwin Allen also did “The Time Tunnel” and “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea”.). And, they did not like becoming mere straight men to the comical Dr. Smith. No way they’d allow that scene stealing Jonathan Harrison equal star billing.
Thus, for the entire shoot, Jonathan Harris was billed on the credits after everyone else as a “Special Guest Star” despite the fact he starred in practically every episode.
For those who are curious, you can see the original pilot (No Place to Hide) and the reshot pilot (The Reluctant Stowaway) on Hulu. Warning: The original pilot is quite tedious.
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### Author:  [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)
#### Post date: [July 18, 2010, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/7 "2010-07-18T19:16:40Z")
It’s not merely ego. What sort of billing you got on your last job can influence how much you get paid on your new job. Sometimes it can even make the difference as to whether you get the next job.
And note that being billed at the very end is better than being billed in the middle of a large cast. For example, these are the credits for the first year of _Babylon 5:_[ul]
[li]_ **Starring** _[list][/li][li] **Michael O’Hare** _as_ Commander Jeffrey Sinclair[/li][li] **Claudia Christian** _as_ Lt. Commander Susan Ivanova[/li][li] **Jerry Doyle** _as_ Security Chief Michael Garibaldi[/li][li] **Mira Furlan** _as_ Delenn[/ul][/li][li]_ **Also starring** _[ul][/li][li] **Richard Biggs** _as_ Dr. Stephen Franklin[/li][li] **Andrea Thompson** _as_ Talia Winters[/li][li] **Stephen Furst** _as_ Vir[/li][li] **Caitlin Brown** _as_ Na’Toth[/ul][/li][li]_ **With** _[ul][/li][li] **Andreas Katsulas** _as_ G’Kar[/ul][/li][li]_ **And** _[ul][/li][li] **Peter Jurasik** _as_ Londo[/ul][/li][/LIST]
“Starring” is better than “also starring”, but “with…and” is better than “also starring”, too.
A device used when there are two equal stars is to display than _per bend sinister_:
```auto
Romeo
Juliet
```
That way, one is on top (better than underneath), but the other is on the left (better than the right).
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### Author:  [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)
#### Post date: [July 18, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/8 "2010-07-18T23:13:37Z")
> [@](#):
>
> A device used when there are two equal stars is to display than per bend sinister:
Another way to deal with that is to change it up. Since you already mentioned _Babylon 5_, Andreas Katsulas and Peter Jurasik alternated places from season to season (i.e., in season 2, it was "with Peter Jurasik as Londo and Andreas Katsulas as G’Kar).
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### Author:  [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2010, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/9 "2010-07-19T12:30:04Z")
> [@Chronos](#):
>
> Another way to deal with that is to change it up. Since you already mentioned _Babylon 5_, Andreas Katsulas and Peter Jurasik alternated places from season to season (i.e., in season 2, it was "with Peter Jurasik as Londo and Andreas Katsulas as G’Kar).
I remember that the original Giligan’s Island episodes, the theme song didn’t mention The Professor and Mary Anne (with the pictures and name of the actors underneath). They were simply billed “And the rest”.
I can imagine the intense behind the scene negotiations by the agents that took place to make sure that their stars were given better billing in future episodes.
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### Author:  [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2010, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/10 "2010-07-19T12:58:03Z")
Here are definitions of some of the various types of producers:
> **[Film producer](https://en-academic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/136861)**
>
> A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre…
It appears to me that, although the title “associate producer” is vaguely a courtesy title, such people do have some important involvement in a movie. It just tends to be all done before the production starts. The associate producer may be the person who finds the source material and prepares it for the producer, or they may have bought the rights to that material.
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### Author:  [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2010, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/11 "2010-07-19T15:40:11Z")
> [@qazwart](#):
>
> I remember that the original Giligan’s Island episodes, the theme song didn’t mention The Professor and Mary Anne (with the pictures and name of the actors underneath). They were simply billed “And the rest”.
>
> I can imagine the intense behind the scene negotiations by the agents that took place to make sure that their stars were given better billing in future episodes.
Actually, according to a reunion/documentary, the agents didn’t do the negotiation–Bob Denver did. His minimally credited costars felt that they had too large a part to be ignored, and he agreed. So he used the fact that he, being the titular star, had negotiated the right to have himself credited however he wanted. So he gave the producers (or whatever those people are rightfully called) an ultimatum–either put Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells in the opening credits, or he would be credited under “and the rest.”
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### Author:  [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2010, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/12 "2010-07-19T22:31:18Z")
> [@BigT](#):
>
> Actually, according to a reunion/documentary, the agents didn’t do the negotiation–Bob Denver did. His minimally credited costars felt that they had too large a part to be ignored, and he agreed. So he used the fact that he, being the titular star, had negotiated the right to have himself credited however he wanted. So he gave the producers (or whatever those people are rightfully called) an ultimatum–either put Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells in the opening credits, or he would be credited under “and the rest.”
I guess that finally answers THAT question. Now the only question remaining is “[Mary Ann or Ginger](http://www.ginger-or-mary-ann.com/cgi-bin/justresults.pl)?”
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### Author:  [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)
#### Post date: [July 19, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/13 "2010-07-19T23:39:50Z")
Producer: Maxwell Sheffield
Associate Producer: C.C. Babcock
Watching seven seasons of The Nanny has finally paid off.
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### Author:  [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)
#### Post date: [July 20, 2010, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/14 "2010-07-20T22:24:15Z")
Huh, sounds like Bob Denver is a great guy to have as a friend.
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### Author:  [@Powers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Powers)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2010, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/15 "2010-07-21T14:12:34Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#):
>
> And note that being billed at the very end is better than being billed in the middle of a large cast. For example, these are the credits for the first year of _Babylon 5:_[
Ironic that Bill Mumy wasn’t credited in Season One, even though we were just talking about _Lost in Space_. =)
Powers &8^]
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### Author:  [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2010, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/16 "2010-07-21T19:14:50Z")
> [@Powers](#):
>
> Ironic that Bill Mumy wasn’t credited in Season One, even though we were just talking about _Lost in Space_. =)
> Powers &8^]
My mistake. He goes between Furst and Brown.
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### Author:  [@qazwart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qazwart)
#### Post date: [July 21, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/re-in-tv-and-movie-credits-what-do-star-co-star-guest-star-etc-mean/546958/17 "2010-07-21T19:54:50Z")
> [@Powers](#):
>
> Ironic that Bill Mumy wasn’t credited in Season One, even though we were just talking about _Lost in Space_. =)
> Powers &8^]
I just watched the first season’s third show credits:
Staring Bill Guys…June Lockhart…
Co-starring Mark Goddard…Marta Kristen
Bill Mummy and Angela Cartwright as “Penny”
Special Guest Star Jonathan Harris
The third and final season had the same billing. They were shooting 30 of these each year. I know plenty of shows that only shoot maybe 15 episodes per season.