History Characters / TheTrumanShow

* AffablyEvil: Despite his disrespect for Truman’s freedom and privacy, Christof was actually never willing to hurt Truman as [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans long as he stayed in the studio world]], and was otherwise cool and collected.

* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Any bonding moments with his "son" is more out of selfish reason, rather than genuine care.

* AttentionWhore: When Truman was in college, the announcement was made that he needed a wife to achieve "the first on-air conception" and numerous women were considered for the role, but Hannah, just an extra at the time, forcefully inserted herself into Truman's life, and eventually became Mrs. Meryl Burbank. She took advantage of the fact that she was close to Truman to score as many endorsement deals as she could, while doing the bare minimum for pretending to be his "loving wife." During Truman's escape attempt she was more concerned with holding on the role that made her a famous wealthy woman, than his well being, and when Truman tries to discuss his mental anguish after being brought home, she instead opts to hock some hot chocolate, and he furiously explodes at her because (as far as Truman knows) she would rather pretend to be filming a [=TV=] commercial than have a serious converstion. When Marlon is sent in with a six-pack of beer, she breaks down, not because her "husband" has had a psychotic episode and is threatening her, but because she can't work in such "unprofessional" conditions.
* BadBadActing: Hannah's acting style fits right in with the fifties aesthetic Christof is going for, but she's notably hammier than Marlon and when it comes to improvisation, she's a catastrophe who falls back on the ProductPlacement she's so good at. It's to the point that you can tell how real is her emotional breakdown after Truman confronts her in the kitchen, because it feels genuine in comparison to her show act.

* SkewedPriorities: After she and Truman return home following his failed escape attempt, he tries to have a serious conversation with her about how hoe the world around him feels fake, and he feels trapped because can't go anywhere outside of Sea Heaven. Instead of trying to console him, Meryl decides that now is the best time to hock some hot chocolate for the sake of making a few extra bucks from her endorsement deal. Truman furiously explodes and attacks her because instead of talking to him when he needs emotional support, she instead decides to pretend (according to Truman) that she's filming a TV commercial.

* WrongLineOfWork: Hanna is very much a spokes-model instead of an actress, as she has trouble acting as if she really does love Truman, and her talents clearly lie in advertising the products she endorses on the show, which is reinforced in a DeletedScene in which, right before she joins Truman in an adjoining room of the house, she models her wardrobe as if she were in a runway, while a voice-over narrates the designers' names and prices for her clothes, shoes, and accessories. She would have made a more comfortable living filming [=TV=] commercials and posing for catalogues, but then [[AttentionWhore she would not be close to Truman, and be the center of attention]], nor would she be as [[RichBitch rich as the Queen of England, as she states in an interview]].

* UnwantedSpouse: Truman and Meryl are this for each other, because the woman he really fell for was whisked away right in front of him with only flimsy excuses to justify it, and he married Meryl on the rebound. It's clear early on in the film that he is ''not'' happy being with her, especially since she constantly shoots down his ambitions of traveling, and they just don't have any real chemistry together.

* StepfordSmiler: He's obviously quietly dissatisfied with his life quite early on in the movie.

* KnightTemplarParent: He created the perfect world for Truman after seeing how the homeless sufferer from poverty but has become so obsessed with protecting him and maintaining the perfect world that he's forgotten that Truman is still a human being with his own thoughts and desires. He instills aquaphobia in Truman so he wouldn't try to flee Seaheaven and removed Silvia because she wasn't the person Truman was supposed to love. [[spoiler: When he realises that Truman has escaped, he decided to trigger a storm that could kill him rather than let him go.]]

* DrunkOnTheDarkSide: He created The Truman Show because he saw how miserable life can be for the homeless and he wanted to save Truman from the fate of being an orphan. However, it's very clear that he's now addicted to controlling Truman's life and has forgotten that Truman is still a human being, not a plaything. [[spoiler: It's also telling that Christof's argument for convincing Truman to stay is that he "saved" him from poverty, homelessness and because Christof goes as far as to say that he is better than [[WantsAPrizeForBasicDecency Truman's own biological parents because he didn't abandon him when he could have as a baby]].]]

* AGodAmI: Has these feelings towards Truman. By the climax he's reached the point he believes he has the right to [[spoiler: kill him for the sake of the show.]] There's also a moment at the end [[spoiler: where he speaks to Truman, and describes himself as "[[BlasphemousBoast the creator...]] [{{Beat}}] of a television show, that gives hope and joy and inspiration to millions."]]

* {{Narcissist}}: Taken to frightening levels.

* MoneyDearBoy: InUniverse, she has ''zero'' real love for Truman. She plays the wife for money.

* PunchClockVillain: He's passionate about the production of The Truman Show, but in the end, it's just his job.

The creator of The Truman Show. Christof remains dedicated to the program at all costs, often overseeing and directing its course in person.

** The entire reason why he bumped Walter/Kirk off the show in the first place [[ScareEmStraight was to traumatize Truman,]] inducing Aquaphobia. When Truman becomes disillusioned and suspicious of his world after seeing his "father" again, when the latter sneaks back onto the set to be promptly escorted out, Christof realizes [[SmugSnake only what caused the unsolvable problem can solve it]], reuniting Truman [[BackFromTheDead with Walter/Kirk]]. But not only didn't he anticipate this wouldn't deter Truman from trying to leave, but he just ''cured'' the star of his crippling fear of the ocean.
** After Truman disappears, Christof goes to increasingly frantic measures to locate him. He organises the entire cast into a search party across the set, leaving them visibly out-of-character if he ever returned, and when he finds him trying to sail out of town, he resorts to overclocking weather controls to try and stop him, and as a final resort, directly ''begs'' him to stay. Even if Christof could have stopped Truman, by this point he had left no pretence whatsoever that the world around him was fake and had zero chance of reverting the show back to normal.

* LovingAShadow: While he seems to think of Truman as a surrogate child, it's made clear that he just doesn't understand him as another person, especially near the end, where he fails to realize that he's negating Truman's aquaphobia by reintroducing his fake father and that his star really does have the resolve to escape. In their first and only conversation, Truman pointedly tells Christoff that he never fit a camera in his head.

* NiceJobFixingItVillain: In the literal sense. Christof hated the real CrapsackWorld, and wanted to make Seahaven an idyllic place, where everywhere is immaculate. Where everyone is kind and polite to each other, and no one is homeless. Christof fixed everything. Problem is, Truman's having a mental breakdown and the fact that no one responds to his erratic behaviour, with either agitation or compassion, forces the star to confront how artificial this paradise truly is.

* SatelliteLoveInterest: By design.

* SatelliteLoveInterest: Meryl doesn't really love Truman and is only acting the part of his love interest.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: The entire reason why he bumped Walter/Kirk off the show in the first place [[ScareEmStraight was to traumatize Truman,]] inducing Aquaphobia. When Truman becomes disillusioned and suspicious of his world after seeing his "father" again, when the latter sneaks back onto the set to be promptly escorted out, Christof realizes [[SmugSnake only what caused the unsolvable problem can solve it]], reuniting Truman [[BackFromTheDead with Walter/Kirk]]. But not only didn't he anticipate this wouldn't deter Truman from trying to leave, but he just ''cured'' the star of his crippling fear of the ocean.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: An Invoked Trope, "Lauren" was originally meant to literally just be an extra in the show, but Truman happened to have LoveAtFirstSight with her. In the heat of the moment she ran off with him for one night and tried to tell him the truth about the setting, and this left a lasting impact on both Truman and the show as a whole. Even Meryl, Truman's intended LoveInterest-turned-Wife is treated as a ReplacementScrappy by the show's fanbase.

* NotSoDifferent: After their bitter on-air callback confrontation, the way both Sylvia and Christof stroke Truman's image on the monitor suggests that, for their obvious vehement differences, they both genuinely love and care for Truman in their separate ways.

* GodIsDispleased: Becomes ''very unhappy'' with Truman's apparent paranoia as his star questions the world around him.