Minor characters often resemble famous people or fictional characters, usually caricatures of existing French people of the same era, particularly from television and the spectacles. In Obelix and Co, the young Roman bureaucrat is a caricature of a young Jacques Chirac and it includes two Roman legionaries drawn to the likeness of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. In Asterix and the Falling Sky, the super-clones are a caricature of both Superman and Arnold Schwarzenegger and their leader, Toon, resembles Mickey Mouse. Likewise the planet which Toon hails from, Tadilsweny, is an anagram of Walt Disney, in homage to the late cartoonist. At the back of the issue Uderzo also writes a short testimony to Walt Disney and gives away the anagram by mentioning "..Tadsil..., I mean, Walt Disney...".

Such characters usually stand out visually, by not having the bulbous noses otherwise typical of Uderzo's style. Other side characters allude to people related to the place Asterix is visiting. Notable examples include a very Elizabeth Taylor-like Cleopatra in Asterix and Cleopatra; Britain's most famous bards in the story Asterix in Britain, who are four in number, look remarkably like the Beatles; and both Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are depicted in Asterix in Spain.

More recently, this spoofing has occasionally extended to major characters as well: in Asterix and the Black Gold, a Roman spy posing as a druid, is a young Sean Connery named Dubbelosix drawn in James Bond style, and in Asterix and Obelix All at Sea, the leader of the escaped slaves (named Spartakis, being Greek) is based on Kirk Douglas’ portrayal of the title character of Spartacus.

In Asterix and the Cauldron, the head of the theatre is Laurensolivius, based on the actor Laurence Olivier. In the same book, there is another theatre actor of the name Alecguinius, based on the actor Alec Guinness.

A number of running gags recur in various albums. One of these is that the bard Cacofonix is inspired to sing whenever Asterix and Obelix leave or come back from a grand journey, but is usually prevented from performing by Fulliautomatix (the blacksmith). When an adventure concludes, the village holds a banquet, but the bard is nearly always seen tied up and gagged so as not to disrupt the festivities.