History Main / MinorMajorCharacter

* Myth/ClassicalMythology: Hestia is the goddess of the hearth, protector of family, the firstborn daughter of Cronus, one of the twelve Olympians (before being supplanted by Dionysus), sister of Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter and Hades and in some places, she was so popular that she got offering before the other gods. Her actual presence in the entire Mythology however? Almost nonexistent. All we know is that she swore to remain a virgin after turning down Poseidon and Apollo. Her Roman equivalent Vesta fares little better. The only story we have from Ovid is Priapus' attempt to rape her in her sleep.

* ''VideoGame/RivieraThePromisedLand'' has Seth, the counterpart of the [[BigGood Ursula]] that [[BigBad Hector]] intends to unseal in order to [[spoiler:[[FusionDance fuse with her]] [[GodhoodSeeker and become a god]]]]. When she's finally unsealed, she only has [[WeHardlyKnewYe one scene and line of dialogue]] before [[spoiler:Hector fuses with her to become the FinalBoss, Seth-Rah]].

* ''Manga/OnePiece'':
** The Five Elder Stars are a council of five men who sit at the very top of the government. They appear whenever there is a huge change in the world, such as Luffy defeating Crocodile and [[spoiler: the death of Whitebeard]], but they aren't shown physically doing much or even been named until hundreds of chapters later and yet they decide almost anything related to the Marines, the World Government and the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
** Just below them in rank is Commander-in-Chief Kong. He has power over the entire military of the World Government, which includes the Marines, the Seven Warlords of the Sea, ''and'' all the branches of Cipher Pol. He has had two appearance so far, one of which was canon but not part of the manga proper.

** Donovan Desmond has a similar treatment in terms of his role in the story. He is ''the'' target of Operation Strix, the mission that causes the entire series to begin, but very little is ever shown of this guy. Explained in-universe by his being rather paranoid because of his standing in the National Unity Party, so he keeps his public appearances and social circle incredibly small. It takes quite a while for him to appear in person, being previously only shown in information documents or rather caricatured in Anya's ImagineSpots.

* Franky Franklin in ''Manga/SpyXFamily'' is a minor character appearing quite often to assist Twilight as a knowledge broker, trusted companion, and convenient babysitter for Anya or dogsitter for Bond. However, the chapters detailing Twilight's past reveal that Franky was an Ostanian soldier that had deserted the army when he stumbled across Westalian soldier Twilight. And it was his own realization that the war was pointless because both sides could merely feed information to the masses to get them to rally for the war that ultimately led to Twilight having a similar epiphany and leaving the army to become a spy for WISE. Franky basically caused the creation of Westalis' best spy Twilight, along with the entire series.

* ''VideoGame/RivieraThePromisedLand has Seth, the counterpart of the [[BigGood Ursula]] that [[BigBad Hector]] intends to unseal in order to [[spoiler:[[FusionDance fuse with her]] [[GodhoodSeeker and become a god]]]]. When she's finally unsealed, she only has [[WeHardlyKnewYe one scene and line of dialogue]] before [[spoiler:Hector fuses with her to become the FinalBoss, Seth-Rah]].

* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'': [[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness The SEELE Committee]] seem to basically run the world, but we only see a few of their faces, and only their leader, Keel Lorenz, even has a name.
* The three Admirals of the [[TheFederation Time-Space Administration Bureau]] in ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaStrikers''. Very important in the setting, but not important enough to even have names or more than one line of dialogue.
* In ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' you could count the Tailed Beasts and their hosts who aren't the One-, Eight-, and Nine-Tails and their specific hosts. They're a major part of the setting and the goal of main antagonist organization Akatsuki is to capture all of them, yet the Two-Tails and its host are killed in just a couple chapters, the Three-Tails was beaten off-screen and its host was already dead by then ([[spoiler:though he turned out to be a semi-important PosthumousCharacter]]), and the Four-Tailed host was shown once after being beaten entirely off-screen with the Four-Tails itself never shown, while the Five-, Six-, and Seven-Tails and their deceased hosts were initially relegated to supplementary materials (though the Six-Tailed host got an anime-only filler arc). Eventually, [[spoiler:all the dead hosts and their beasts finally appear in the series proper...as super-powered zombies, and though they give the heroes a tough fight, hand Naruto some important plot details and life lessons, and help him achieve his next power-up, the Four-Tails is the only one of them who gets a decent amount of characterization.]]
** To a lesser extent is Zō, the white-robed ANBU captain with the cat mask. He's the ''leader'' of Konoha's [[EliteMooks ANBU Black Ops]], yet only appears three times (during the Sound invasion, [[spoiler:the Third Hokage's funeral]], and [[spoiler:Pain's destruction of Konoha]]) and is of no importance to the story. Even his ''[[NominalImportance name]]'' [[AllThereInTheManual is only revealed in a databook]]. The only things in the story itself to hint that he's more than just an ordinary ANBU are the white captain's robe (ordinary ANBU wear black robes) and the fact that he's among the few masked ANBU who doesn't [[TheWorfEffect die to show how dangerous a villain is]].

* Prince Eugene of ''Manga/BokuraNoKiseki''. His presence pervades the story, as he was the husband of Veronica (who the main character is the reincarnation of) and possibly one of the only people in the castle who knew ''why'' Moswick was attacking its ally Zerestria, yet readers know almost nothing about him beyond that he was the Third Prince of Moswick.

* ''Franchise/DragonBall'':
** King Cold in ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', despite being TheManBehindTheMan in Frieza's galaxy-wide empire and his existence a secret known only to his immediate family and a few soldiers, only appears to rescue his son and then get killed by Trunks on Earth. And [[Anime/DragonBallZResurrectionF unlike]] [[Anime/DragonBallSuper his son]], he never comes BackFromTheDead.
** Raditz. He's Goku's brother and the first Saiyan other than him to appear in the series, as well as [[HeroicSacrifice the cause of Goku's first death]]. But despite all that, he's really just used as a stepping stone to introduce the idea of Saiyans and other aliens to the franchise. He's killed off quickly with Vegeta replacing him as the ArcVillain and never appears again, despite the series' frequent use of DeathIsCheap and DefeatMeansFriendship on antagonists with far lesser connections to the hero. ''Anime/BardockTheFatherOfGoku'' initially ''forgot he existed'' even though Bardock is also his father as well, but [[ParentalFavoritism he favors Goku over him]] and neglects to think about Raditz ''in his own dying moments''. Subsequent re-releases had Bardock mention him in a throwaway line, but he still gets no screentime in a special specifically devoted to exploring Goku's family history.
* ''Anime/LittleWitchAcademia2017'' has the Nine Witches, the founders of Luna Nova Academy and some of the most powerful magic users ever. Only two of them are named and are involved in the plot to varying degrees, but nothing is known about the other seven (except for, of all things, their hats).

* In ''WebAnimation/PokemonGenerations'', despite his central role in events and character motivations, Red's face is mostly obscured, he never speaks, his name is never said out loud and his onscreen appearances mostly have him in the background. While he is responsible for the downfall of Team Rocket, Looker and the police don't appear to even know who he is.
* ''Manga/JujutsuKaisen'' has Master Tengen. An ancient, immortal Jujutsu sorcerer who maintains the barriers around the Jujutsu Schools. Without these barriers, the schools could not exist, as they would be under constant attack from Curses. Without these schools, training new Jujutsu sorcerers would be exponentially more difficult. So already his existence is massively important for the setting. Furthermore, he needs to merge with a special person called a Star Plasma Vessel every 500 years in order to continue on as he is. Failure to do so will likely cause him to [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence]], rendering him unable to maintain the barriers and potentially becoming an existential threat to humanity. In spite of this, he has never spoken nor has he appeared in-person, even during an arc that centered around delivering him a new vessel.

* ''Franchise/StreetFighter'': Ken's only significance to the plot is being Ryu's [[HeterosexualLifePartners best friend]] [[FriendlyRivalry and]] [[TheRival sparring partner]]. Aside from that, his role in the series was inconsequential until VideoGame/StreetFighter6 made him TheProtagonist.

** However, Ryu himself becomes a MinorMajorCharacter in all of the ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' games, with Alex becoming TheProtagonist in those games. Ryu continues being a MinorMajorCharacter in VideoGame/StreetFighter6, with either Ken or a player avatar becoming TheProtagonist depending on the game mode.

* ''Franchise/StreetFighter'': Ken's only significance to the plot is being Ryu's [[HeterosexualLifePartners best friend]] [[FriendlyRivalry and]] [[TheRival sparring partner]]. Aside from that, his role in the series is inconsequential.
** By contrast, while [[TheProtagonist Ryu]] is something of a LivingMacGuffin and SupportingProtagonist, he is at the center of every major plot relevant event and has either fought, defeated, or been targeted by every major villain. Sagat strives to reclaim his former glory by defeating him, [[BigBad Bison]] wants to enslave him, [[TheDreaded Akuma]] is determined to make Ryu [[SuperpoweredEvilSide succumb]] to the [[KillingIntent Satsui no Hado]], and (by the time of ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterIII SFIII]]'') Oro takes a shine to him and decides to make Ryu his student. Meanwhile, Ken gets stuck dealing with [[JokeCharacter joke characters]] like Sean and Rufus.

** By contrast, [[TheProtagonist Ryu]] is at the center of every major plot relevant event and has either fought, defeated, or been targeted by every major villain. Sagat strives to reclaim his former glory by defeating him, [[BigBad Bison]] wants to enslave him, [[TheDreaded Akuma]] is determined to make Ryu [[SuperpoweredEvilSide succumb]] to the [[KillingIntent Satsui no Hado]], and (by the time of ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterIII SFIII]]'') Oro takes a shine to him and decides to make Ryu his student. Meanwhile, Ken gets stuck dealing with [[JokeCharacter joke characters]] like Sean and Rufus.

** Raditz. He's Goku's brother and the first Saiyan other than him to appear in the series, as well as [[HeroicSacrifice the cause of Goku's first death]]. But despite all that, he's really just used as a stepping stone to introduce the idea of Saiyans and other aliens to the franchise. He's killed off quickly with Vegeta replacing him as the ArcVillain and never appears again, despite the series' frequent use of DeathIsCheap and DefeatMeansFriendship on antagonists with far lesser connections to the hero. ''Anime/BardockTheFatherOfGoku'' initially ''forgot he existed'' even though Bardock would have been his father as well. Subsequent re-releases had Bardock mention him in a throwaway line, but he still gets no screentime in a special specifically devoted to exploring Goku's family history.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'':
** While all nine of the Coven Heads have unique designs, only five of them any real characterization. The other four (Construction Head Mason, Healing Head Hettie Cutburn, Oracle Head Osran, and Potions Head Vitmir) aren't given any characterization, have no lines, and were only named through WordOfGod. Presumably, they would have all gotten focus episodes had the show not been CutShort.
** Until his backstory was detailed in Season 3, just knowing that [[spoiler:Caleb Wittebane]] even ''existed'' required you to [[MeaningfulBackgroundEvent pick through minute details in the backgrounds of several episodes]]. The closest thing he has to appearing on screen physically is when [[spoiler:Belos hallucinates his ghost]] in "For the Future", and he never speaks a single line. Despite this, he's one of the most important characters in the entire setting, as [[spoiler:him leaving the Human Realm to be with his partner Evelyn, a witch, caused his younger brother Philip to charge in after him in an attempt to rescue him from the evils of witchcraft. Finding out that Caleb went voluntarily caused Philip to fly into a rage, [[SiblingMurder stab Caleb to death]], and [[StartOfDarkness set him on the path towards becoming the series's]] GreaterScopeVillain, Emperor Belos. Caleb is also implied to be an ancestor of the Clawthorne family, and is technically the biological parent of the countless [[ReplacementGoldfish Grimwalkers]] Belos has made of him, with Hunter being the latest, and the one who looks the most like him]]. Similarly, [[spoiler: Evelyn]] only appears in those same background details, but is important due to [[spoiler: her role in bringing Caleb to the Boiling Isles, which resulted in Philip's Start of Darkness. Evelyn has very little screen presence even compared to Caleb; her face is hidden in all of Philip's memory portraits of his brother and her last name is never mentioned in the series, even though it's implied to be Clawthorne.]]
** For the majority of the show, [[Characters/TheOwlHouseCamilaNoceda Camila Noceda]] has very little ''physical'' presence, however she has a ''massive'' impact upon Luz's character as a result of how Luz feels heavily disconnected from her mother, in addition to her desperation to get back to Camila to show that she is okay after she destroys the Portal Door in "Young Blood, Old Souls". When the two briefly reunite in "Yesterday's Lie", the sheer guilt that Luz experiences over the grief she accidentally caused her mother indirectly inspires some of her later actions in the series, including opting to travel back in time to learn the secrets of crafting a Portal Door from Philip Wittebane. [[spoiler:As a result of the events of "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E21KingsTide King's Tide]]" and "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS3E1ThanksToThem Thanks to Them]]", this no longer applies due to the Hexsquad getting trapped in the Human Realm in the former, and Camila opting to travel with them back to the Demon Realm in the latter.]]

** The Five Elder Stars are a council of five men who sit at the very top of the government. They appear whenever there is a huge change in the world, such as Luffy defeating Crocodile and [[spoiler: the death of Whitebeard]], but they aren't shown physically doing much or even been named and yet they decide almost anything related to the Marines, the World Government and the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

** Until his backstory was detailed in Season 3, just knowing that [[spoiler:Caleb Wittebane]] even ''existed'' required you to [[MeaningfulBackgroundEvent pick through minute details in the backgrounds of several episodes]]. The closest thing he has to appearing on screen physically is when [[spoiler:Belos hallucinates his ghost]] in "For the Future", and he never speaks a single line. Despite this, he's one of the most important characters in the entire setting, as [[spoiler:him leaving the Human Realm to be with his partner Evelyn, a witch, caused his younger brother Philip to charge in after him in an attempt to rescue him from the evils of witchcraft. Finding out that Caleb went voluntarily caused Philip to fly into a rage, [[SiblingMurder stab Caleb to death]], and [[StartOfDarkness set him on the path towards becoming the series's]] GreaterScopeVillain, Emperor Belos. Caleb is also implied to be an ancestor of the Clawthorne family, and is technically the biological parent of the countless [[ReplacementGoldfish Grimwalkers]] Belos has made of him, with Hunter being the latest, and the one who looks the most like him]].

* ''LightNovel/ScrappedPrincess'': Browning is one of two [[DeityOfHumanOrigin gods]] in the series, with the other being Mauser. However, while both have religious followings in their name, [[HeroWithBadPublicity Browning]] is nowhere near as significant to the plot [[BigGood as Mauser]] and only comes into the picture during the final 3 episodes, where his [[AMechByAnyOtherName Gigantes]] are used to [[spoiler: battle the Peacemakers]].

* Gyuriedistodiez in ''LightNovel/SoImASpiderSoWhat'' is the sole active god of the world, Administrator for the System which governs the skills used by all of its residents, and is undoubtedly the most powerful being in terms of raw strength. Despite this, his indecisiveness and self-recrimination has left him all but inactive both in story and in terms of the world itself. His greatest role is in reacting to the actions of far more important characters such as Kumoko and Shiro.

** While all nine of the Coven Heads have unique designs, only five of them any real characterization. The other four (Construction, Healing, Oracle and Potions) aren't given any characterization, have no lines, and their personalities remain unknown (though their names were given via a tweet from a member of the show's staff). Presumably, they would have all gotten focus episodes had the show not been CutShort.
** [[spoiler:Caleb Wittebane, Philip Wittebane/Emperor Belos' brother]], has been dead for centuries, and is only ''pictured'' in the backgrounds of two episodes. Despite this, he's one of the most important characters in the entire setting, as [[spoiler:his death at Philip's hands cemented Philip's journey to become the BigBad of the story. He is also the [[CloningBlues ortet of the countless grimwalkers Belos has made of him, with Hunter being the latest in the line]]]].

** ''Film/SawV'' introduces the [[NoNameGiven unnamed]] chief of the Metropolitan Police Department at the time of the first seven films. It should go without saying that he must have given particular attention to the notorious Jigsaw killers, especially once they rack a good body count and show themselves to be competent enough to outsmart the police many times. However, he's only seen at the ceremony held to announce the supposed end of their killing spree in that film, not even returning in later installments once further games pop up or Hoffman is exposed as the killer who's been holding them since that moment.

** ''Film/SawV'' introduces the chief of the Metropolitan Police Department at the time of the first seven films. It should go without saying that he must have given particular attention to the notorious Jigsaw killers, especially once they rack a good body count and show themselves to be competent enough to outsmart the police many times. However, he's only seen at the ceremony held to announce the supposed end of their killing spree in that film, not even returning in later installments once further games pop up or Hoffman is exposed as the killer who's been holding them since that moment.

** ''Film/SawV'' introduces the chief of the Metropolitan Police Department at the time of the first seven films. It should go without saying that he must have given particular attention to the notorious Jigsaw killers, especially once they rack a good body count and show themselves to be competent enough to outsmart the police. However, he's only seen at the ceremony held to announce the supposed end of their killing spree in that film, not even returning in later installments once further games pop up or Hoffman is exposed as the killer who's been holding them since that moment.

** Averted with Marcus Banks, another chief of the department, in ''Film/Spiral2021''. While he's retired at the time of the film's events, his acts back during his tenure are responsible for much of the plot's roots, and gets a major role in the movie's late half.

** Also the unnamed Mudokons that go with you to save Necrum Mines(and you have to save afterwards from a Soulstorm Brew overdose) in ''Abe's Exoddus''.

* Duke Claes in ''LightNovel/MyNextLifeAsAVillainessAllRoutesLeadToDoom'' is the main character's father and one of the most important nobles in the kingdom, but has maybe ten or twenty lines throughout the first two novels.

A character who, though holding an important position within the world of the story, holds, at best, a minor role and more usually a few lines of dialogue in a single scene. May turn out to be ChekhovsGunman or become an AscendedExtra in other works. {{Greater Scope Villain}}s and {{Greater Scope Paragon}}s usually qualify, as do most members of the OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness and some occurrences of the SpecialGuest. Even the BigBad and BigGood can qualify in some works.

** Minerva is the goddess of the planet (or at least a very powerful summon) and, for all intents and purposes, Jenova's equal and opposite. The only thing she does in the entire compilation is serve as a BonusBoss in the aforementioned ''Crisis Core''.