Role sizes in American television follow a ladder, and the terms on each rung show up in breakdowns, deals and resumes. Co-star and guest star are the two rungs most actors spend their early careers moving between, so it pays to know exactly what each one means, and what sits above and below them.
One warning first. "Co-star" means two different things. In press and on film posters, a co-star is one of the leads ("she co-stars with..."). In TV casting it means one of the smallest speaking roles. On this page, it is always the TV casting sense.
The TV role ladder, from smallest to largest
- Background. Non-speaking. You fill the world: diners, commuters, the crowd in the courtroom. Background is a separate category from principal roles, with its own contracts and rates.
- Under-five. A principal role of five lines or fewer, a category used mainly in daytime television and some other union contracts.
- Co-star. A small speaking role, often hired by the day, which is why it is also called a day player.
- Guest star. A significant role in one episode, often central to its plot.
- Recurring. A character who returns across episodes without being a series regular.
- Series regular. A main cast member, under contract for the season and credited in the main titles.
| Role | Typical size | Typical time on set | Usual billing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Co-star | A few lines, one or two scenes | A day or two | End credits |
| Guest star | A real story in the episode, several scenes | Several days, sometimes the whole episode | Opening credits, after the main cast |
| Recurring | Varies; returns in more than one episode | Booked episode by episode | Usually as a guest star each time |
| Series regular | Main cast | Most or all episodes in the season | Main titles |
Line counts and days are rules of thumb. What decides the category is the contract the role is booked under and how the production defines the part.
What is a co-star role?
A co-star is the nurse who tells the family the surgery went well, the detective's colleague who hands over a file, the barista who notices something. The role exists to move the plot or give a main character something to react to. You usually shoot in a single day, and you are credited at the end of the episode.
Co-stars are paid at the union's day rate for performers, or close to it. You will often hear "scale plus ten," meaning the union minimum plus an extra 10% to cover the agent's commission. Exact rates are set in the union contract and change; check sagaftra.org.
Small does not mean easy. A co-star walks onto a set where everyone else has been working together for months, hits a mark, delivers the information cleanly and gets out of the way of the story. Casting watches co-star auditions for exactly that: someone who sounds like a real nurse and does not try to make the scene about the nurse.
What is a guest star role?
A guest star carries part of an episode. On a procedural, it is often the person the case revolves around: the suspect, the patient, the client. On a comedy, it may be someone from a main character's past. Brad Pitt's Thanksgiving episode of Friends is a well-known example: he plays Will, an old school friend of Ross who turns out to have hated Rachel in high school, and the whole episode is built around him. Guest stars have several scenes, real emotional turns, and usually work several days.
Billing comes near the start of the episode, under "guest starring," after the main cast. Well-known names may get "special guest star" billing, which is negotiated.
Pay is on a higher tier. Many guest stars are offered a fixed rate called top of show, the most that production pays for guest roles, commonly tied to a figure in the union's TV contract. For most actors the offer is take it or leave it, and the real negotiation is over billing and dates. A hold or first refusal often comes before the offer itself.
How to audition for a co-star vs a guest star
The two auditions ask for different things. For a co-star, casting wants someone believable in the job and easy to work with, who delivers the information so the scene keeps moving. Make it real and specific, keep it simple, and do not invent a backstory that pulls focus from the series regular you are talking to. A co-star audition is often a few lines, and the read may last under a minute.
A guest star audition asks for more. These roles usually have a want, a secret and a turn, and casting wants to see you play all three. Treat it the way you would a lead in a short film: do the full script work, know where the character's story starts and ends within the episode, and be ready for a callback or a producer session. The preparation in how to prepare for an audition applies at full strength.
Recurring and series regular roles
A recurring character comes back. The producers may love what you did and write you into three more episodes, or they may not; there is usually no guarantee beyond the episode you are booked for. Recurring roles can grow into series regular roles, and a recurring credit on a resume says you were good enough to be asked back.
A series regular is part of the main cast, signed to a contract that guarantees a number of episodes per season and usually includes options for future seasons, along with exclusivity terms. Series regular roles are cast through a longer process, often ending in network or studio tests.
Film equivalents
Film uses fewer labels. Leads and supporting roles carry the story. Smaller speaking roles are day players, hired by the day, or weekly players, hired by the week, two categories that come straight from the union's film contract. Background is background. "Co-star" in film almost always means a fellow lead.
Outside the US
Co-star and guest star are American terms. UK and Australian breakdowns more often describe roles by size and days: lead, supporting, guest, a day role. Canadian productions, many of them made for US networks, generally use the US labels. If a breakdown's wording is unfamiliar, here is how to read a casting breakdown.
How role size shows up on your resume
On a US acting resume, the television section lists the role category (Co-Star, Guest Star, Recurring, Series Regular) in the middle column, where theater lists the character's name. That is how casting reads your level at a glance; see how to format an acting resume. Most union TV credits require SAG-AFTRA membership or eligibility, which is covered in how to join SAG-AFTRA, and a first co-star booking is a common way non-union actors get Taft-Hartleyed.
More questions
How many lines does a co-star have?
There is no fixed number. As a rule of thumb, a co-star has a handful of lines, often fewer than ten, across one or two scenes. Some have one line, some have more. The category comes from the union contract and the overall size of the part.
What is an under-five?
A category used in some union contracts, especially daytime television, for a principal role of five lines or fewer. It sits between background and a full day player role, with its own pay rate. On most primetime shows the smallest speaking role is called a co-star instead.
Is a day player the same as a co-star?
In television the terms are often used interchangeably for a small speaking role hired by the day. In film, day player is the usual term, and co-star means something else entirely: one of the leading actors who shares top billing.
What is a recurring role?
A character who appears in more than one episode without being a series regular. Recurring actors are usually booked episode by episode, with no guarantee of a set number, and are often credited as guest stars each time they appear.
What does top of show mean?
Top of show is the highest rate a production pays for guest roles, commonly tied to a figure in the union's television contract. Many guest stars are offered exactly that rate with little room to negotiate, which is why the phrase is so common in deal talk.
Is a co-star role a good credit?
Yes. A union co-star credit on a known show tells agents and casting that you have worked on a professional set and held your own. Most actors build a run of co-stars before casting starts bringing them in for guest star roles.