In fiction, an unseen character is a character that is never directly observed by the audience but is only described by other characters. They are a common device in drama and have been called "triumphs of theatrical invention". They are continuing characters — characters who are currently in frequent interaction with the other characters and who influence current story events. Films, television shows and stage plays make use of characters who are not seen or heard, but who have an effect on the events portrayed.

Radio shows also feature "unheard" characters who never speak. A notable example is the long-running British radio soap The Archers which has featured several such silent characters. Sometimes the script plays with audience knowledge that the characters never speak. The silence of the character Pru Forrest became a long running joke "with scriptwriters competing to invent more outlandish excuses for her failure to speak." She was eventually given a dramatic eruption of speech when Terry Wogan appeared on the soap.

Excited by Wogan's arrival, Pru began to talk, and wouldn't shut up: the big surprise being that she had the voice of Dame Judi Dench. Older listeners, like my mother, who could remember what Pru really sounded like before her non-speaking days, were outraged by this travesty.

Books can feature characters who are referenced by others, but whose actions and dialogue are never directly described. The work of Voltaire, for example, included the "unseen character".