A Bibliometric Analysis of Characters in Mainland Chinese Comedy Films Using Citespace

Comedy films engage with social reality through humorous narration.Their characters not only embody historical experience and reflect social structures, but also perform important functions of emotional regulation and psychological consolation during viewing.According to data from Maoyan, the total box office of the Chinese film market reached RMB 42.502 billion in 2024, with comedy films contributing nearly RMB 20 billion, indicating that comedic characters play a crucial role in achieving commercial success.Despite this prominence, systematic reviews of research on comedy film characters remain limited.To address this gap, this study draws on core Chinese-language scholarship indexed in CNKI Peking University Core Journals and CSSCI from 1996 to 2025.An initial keyword-based search identified 213 publications, of which 163 high-quality articles were retained after applying inclusion criteria.Using CiteSpace for bibliometric analysis, the study identifies core authors (e.g., Chen Xuguang and Rao Shuguang), core institutions (Beijing Film Academy and Film Art), and leading journals in the field (such as Film Literature and Contemporary Film).Further analysis reveals three developmental stages in comedy film character research, with an overall shift from micro-level examinations of individual characters' external comedic traits toward macro-level critiques situated within industrial and social contexts.By correlating these findings with top-grossing comedy films and their leading characters from the same periods, the study delineates three phases of character representation in mainland Chinese comedy films: Diverse Professional Survival Portrayals (1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007), Elite-Grassroots Binary Narratives (2008-2016), and Deep Exploration of Social Issues (2017-2025).Overall, grounded in systematic data-driven methods, this study demonstrates a three-stage evolutionary trajectory in comedy film character research, characterized by a focus on renowned actors or directors, genre films, and production companies, and social issues.The findings indicate an increasing tendency toward diversity and realism in the construction of comedic characters, providing quantitative evidence and theoretical reference for future academic research and creative practice.