John Munch

**John Munch** is a fictional character primarily played by actor Richard Belzer. First appearing as a main character on the American crime drama *Homicide: Life on the Street,* Munch has subsequently appeared on a number of other television shows, including a starring role on *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.* He is the only fictional character to have physically appeared on ten different television shows. Munch has also crossed genres, appearing in not just crime dramas but also sitcoms (*30 Rock, Arrested Development*), adult animation (*American Dad*) and science fiction (*The X-Files*).

Due to his prolific appearances in media, John Munch has tied together a multitude of television shows and films. This has been termed as the **John Munch Cinematic Universe**. This fictional universe shares similarities with other fictional universes, including the Tommy Westphall Universe.

## Appearances

### Main Role

* *Homicide: Life on the Street* (1993 - 1999)
	+ Appeared in 119 episodes (Credited in 122)
* *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit* (1999 - 2016)
	+ Appeared in 242 episodes (Credited in 325)
* *Homicide: The Movie* (2000)

### Guest Roles

* *Law and Order* (1996 - 2000)
	+ Appeared in 4 episodes ("Charm City", "Baby It's You (Part 1)", "Sideshow (Part 1)", "Entitled (Part 2)")
* *The X-Files* (1997)
	+ Appeared in the episode "Unusual Suspects"
* *The Beat* (2000)
	+ Appeared in the episode "They Say It's Your Birthday"
* *Law & Order: Trial by Jury* (2005)
	+ Appeared in the episode "Skeleton)
* *Arrested Development* (2006)
	+ Appeared in the episode "Exit Strategy"
* *The Wire* (2008)
	+ Appeared in the episode "Took"
* *American Dad* (2016)
	+ Appeared in the episode "Next of Pin"

### Guest Roles (Non-JMCU)

* *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* (2009)
	+ Richard Belzer did an impromptu scene as John Munch with host Jimmy Kimmel and John McHale.
		- *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* is a reality show and therefore is not counted in the fictional JMCU.
* *30 Rock* (2011 - 2013)
	+ Appeared in 2 episodes
		- "¡Qué Sorpresa!" - Appears on television in an *SVU* episode being watched by the characters. Although this footage was shot for the episode specifically, this makes *SVU* fiction within the reality of *30 Rock* and therefore this appearance cannot be considered canon to the JMCU.
		- "Last Lunch" - Richard Belzer appears as the actor playing Munch in a scene where Jenna Maroney (Jane Krakowski) lands a guest role on *SVU* as a corpse. Like the previous episode, this posits *SVU* (and therefore John Munch) as fictional in the *30 Rock* universe*.*
* *Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt* (2015)
	+ Appears in the episode "Kimmy Goes to the Doctor!" where Munch appears in a fictional *Law & Order* spinoff on television.
		- This appearance makes the *Law & Order* franchise fiction within the reality of *Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt* and therefore can not be included in the JMCU

### Other Roles (Non-JMCU)

* *Sesame Street* (2006)
	+ A Muppet version of John Munch (portrayed by David Rudman) appears in a Season 37 *Sesame Street* sketch "Law & Order: Special Letters Unit"
		- This appearance is a parody of Munch's role on *SVU* and is not included in the JMCU