Line #0 Trivia/Itsalwayssunnyinphiladelphia


1	!{{Trivia}} tropes for ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia''
2	!!Trivia with Their Own Pages
3	[[index]]
4	* [[WhatCouldHaveBeen/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia What Could Have Been]]
5	[[/index]]
6	----
7	* ActingForTwo:
8	** In "Dennis Looks Like a Registered Sex Offender", Creator/GlennHowerton plays both Dennis and the titular sex offender, Wendell Albright.
9	** Creator/GregoryScottCummins plays both Luther and his brother Donald.
10	* ActorInspiredElement: Creator/CharlieDay, much like his character, is a self-taught multi-instrumentalist who can't read sheet music. His skills aren't nearly as savant-like as Charlie Kelly's, however; being the son of two music teachers who spent all of his childhood surrounded by music.
11	* ActorSharedBackground: Artemis is confirmed to be Iranian-American in "The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 7", which is also true for Creator/ArtemisPebdani.
12	* ApprovalOfGod: While the creators debunked the popular theory that the mail addressed to "Pepe Silvia" that Charlie keeps getting in "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack" were actually addressed to "Pennsylvania" and were getting misread due to his illiteracy, Glenn Howerton admitted that he liked the idea a lot.
13	* AwesomeDearBoy:
14	** Creator/KaitlinOlson signed on because she thought the scripts were hilarious and enjoyed working with the main trio. Though she also made sure that [[CharacterizationMarchesOn characterization marched on]] and Dee was allowed to be as hilarious as the guys rather than just their [[StraightMan Straight Woman]].
15	** After the first season, network executives told Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, and Rob [=McElhenney=] that they needed to add a [[StuntCasting big name]] to draw in viewers or risk getting cancelled. The trio jokingly suggested that the only actor who could possibly fit into the world of the show was Creator/DannyDevito, so they reached out to him for a lunch meeting--and he ''immediately'' accepted the role, since he'd watched the show already and loved it.
16	* BannedEpisode: Five episodes have been removed from streaming due to having {{Blackface}}/{{Brownface}}.
17	** "[[Recap/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS04E03AmericasNextTopPaddys America's Next Top Paddy's Billboard Model Contest]]"
18	** "[[Recap/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS06E09ShapingAmericasYouth Dee Reynolds: Shaping America's Youth]]"
19	** "[[Recap/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS08E02TheGangRecyclesTheirTrash The Gang Recycles Their Trash]]"
20	** "[[Recap/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS09E09TheGangMakesLethalWeapon6 The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 6]]"
21	** "[[Recap/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS14E03DeeDay Dee Day]]"
22	* CaliforniaDoubling: While some exteriors are shot in Philadelphia, the majority of the show is shot in Southern California. This explains why's it's so suspiciously "always sunny in Philadelphia".
23	** The exterior of Paddy's Pub is actually the Pan Pacific Warehouse in the Arts District of Los Angeles. Although the area is almost completely industrial, it ''is'' just down the street from Villains Tavern.
24	** One particularly ironic example is at the end of "Psycho Pete Returns", where the gang puts Pete on a train bound to Los Angeles while obviously standing in Los Angeles Union Station.
25	* TheCastShowoff:
26	** Charlie, like his actor, can sing and play the piano and harmonica. He's also great at ice skating, as Day used to play hockey.
27	** The Gang as a whole seems to enjoy singing, as they'll occasionally burst into song. One early episode begins with the gang singing an ''a capella'' version of "More Than Words" by Music/{{Extreme}} for no particular reason before receiving the plot hook, and "The Gang Gets Quarantined" revolves around them wanting to perform an a capella rendition of “Mowtown Philly" in a Music/BoyzIIMen hosted talent show. It helps that all of them (save for Danny [=DeVito=], who more sing-speaks) are great singers, especially Glenn Howerton (who went to Juilliard) and Charlie Day (who grew up in a musical family).
28	** Rob [=McElhenney=] has a long, elaborate dance sequence at the end of "Mac Finds His Pride".
29	** Mary Elizabeth Ellis shows off her kickboxing skills in "The Gang Goes Bowling" when The Waitress competes in a test your strength arcade game with Dennis at the bowling alley arcade.
30	* CastTheExpert: Mac's dance partner at the end of "Mac Finds His Pride" is played by professional ballerina [[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3328009/mediaviewer/rm1228262144 Kylie Shea.]]
31	* ChannelHop: In an effort to attract interest in the launch of [=FX=]'s comedy-oriented spinoff channel [=FXX=], ''Sunny'' was moved to the new channel along with ''Series/TheLeague'' and ''Series/Legit2013''.
32	* ColbertBump: Online hits for Music/SigurRos' song "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gf1h2PMPCAo Varúð]]" ''skyrocketed'' after it was featured in Mac's epic dance sequence at the end of "Mac Finds His Pride".
33	* CopiouslyCreditedCreator: Creator/RobMcElhenney is listed for the show as "created by" while he and Creator/GlennHowerton are listed as "developed by" and both along with Creator/CharlieDay have both Executive Producer and [[WrittenByCastmember prolific writing credits]]. [=McElheney=] and Howerton have [[DirectedByCastMember some sparse directing credits as well]].
34	* {{Corpsing}}: With everyone in the main cast prone to ad-libs, it happens constantly on the set (Kaitlin cracks up the least, while Rob does it the most). While most of these don't get into the finished product, occasionally a few slip by:
35	** In "Dennis and Dee Go on Welfare", during the [[MemeticMutation infamous]] "did somebody get addicted to crack?" scene, Glenn can be seen giggling for a second before getting back in character.
36	** During the ColdOpen of "Dennis and Dee's Mom is Dead", when Charlie, Mac, and Dennis are about to throw knives at Dee, Charlie and Rob can be seen smiling for a few seconds.
37	** Also in "Dennis and Dee's Mom is Dead", when Dennis is talking to Mac about being unable to recruit someone to their party, Rob can be seen lowering his head and silently laughing.
38	*** Rob tends to do this a lot when he breaks (which is usually caused by Charlie), such as in "Frank Sets Sweet Dee On Fire" when Charlie starts freaking out over Mac yelling at him for not putting a tape in the camera, "Mac And Charlie Write a Movie" where Rob completely loses it at Charlie suggesting they make the main character's head "just one giant nose, “The Gang Tries Desperately To Win An Award” when Charlie starts singing his paint-high induced sing, and "The Gang Buys a Roller Rink" when Charlie walks on tip toes while wearing roller skates over to the car he and Mac are selling drugs to.
39	** In "The Storm of the Century", when Dennis goes into a TranquilFury over the girls he's hitting on having boyfriends, Charlie turns away from the camera and goes into a fit of silent giggles.
40	** In "The World Series Defense", Charlie Day admitted that he started to crack up during the gag with the papers (it was unscripted and Charlie could tell that it was genuinely starting to irritate Glenn, which he found hilarious) and had to duck his head down to try to hide his laughter. His face is relatively hidden but it's still visible.
41	** In ''[=PTSDee=]", in response to Annalisa Cochrane's ad-libbed "My finger touched your asshole!" the camera briefly cuts to the gang's gobsmacked reactions. Mac's mouth is hanging open in shock because Rob is cackling with laughter.
42	** In "Frank Reynolds' Little Beauties," Glenn Howerton and Charlie Day start cracking up as Frank sings his "Do Not Diddle Kids" song. It's most apparent when Frank is in the frame--you can see Glen break into a grin while his face is hidden from view.
43	* CreatorBacklash:
44	** Glenn Howerton has said that if there was one thing he could change about the show, it would be the title of the episode "Sweet Dee's Dating a Retarded Person," as he finds the title to be both personally offensive now and not nearly as intelligent or funny as many of the show's title gags. He, Rob, and Charlie actually address this in the podcast as it being FairForItsDay, but something that they definitely would have worked differently if the episode were made now.
45	** Rob [=McElhenney=] has also stated that he finds the use of the slur "tranny" to describe Carmen in the early seasons [[https://www.femestella.com/its-always-sunny-philadelphia-rob-mcelhenney-regrets/ to be regrettable]].
46	** Rob admitted that aside from "Mac Finds His Pride", the Season 13 episodes without Dennis didn't work.
47	** Kaitlin Olson is dissatisfied with her work in the scene where Dee dances with a tube man in "The Gang Buys a Boat", feeling that she could have gone more over the top with her movements had she not been pregnant at the time it was filmed. Ironically, said scene has become one of the character's most [[MemeticMutation memetic]].
48	** The Always Sunny Podcast has led to the reveal of multiple misgivings that Rob, Charlie, and Glenn have about the show, namely:
49	*** The trio admitted that they don't like the title of the show and consider it the weakest of the titles proposed during development. They also have mixed feelings about Season 1 creatively, opining that they hadn't yet found their footing with the tone of the series.
50	*** Glenn and Rob expressed some regret at killing off Barbara Reynolds within the same season she was introduced in, feeling that she had comedic potential that was never completely realized. Charlie was less wistful, and claimed that killing off the character was ultimately a necessary shake-up to have the show evolve into what it currently is.
51	*** Glenn is outspoken about ''hating'' [[RecklessGunUsage Frank repeatedly misfiring his gun while waving it around]] in "Dennis and Dee Get a New Dad" because [[DullSurprise none of the characters in the scene react to him wildly firing off a gun]] due to the gunshot sounds being an unplanned idea added in post. He notably does ''not'' have a problem with the RunningGag in any of its later appearances, as in those cases it was planned for and reacted to in a believable way.
52	*** Charlie admitted to disliking "The Aluminum Monster vs. Fatty Magoo" upon revisiting it due to finding the sweatshop subplot to be too cartoonish.
53	*** Charlie stated in no uncertain terms that he was against the network's decision to remove episodes such as "America's Next Top Paddy's Bilboard Model" from streaming and future DVD releases for their use of {{Blackface}}, believing it to be more responsible to trust that audiences could recognize that it was used in these instances to demonstrate the ignorance of the characters. Glenn and Rob also share the same sentiment of disapproving of the episodes being banned.
54	*** Charlie fought hard to keep the show from moving from standard definition to high definition early in its run, and even after the switch was made all three of the creators insist on using the cheapest HD cameras possible to minimize the amount of motion smoothing on the show, which they each vocally hate the look of.
55	*** Glenn and his wife, Jill Latiano, who also played Caylee in "The D.E.N.N.I.S System", asked fans to stop leaving comments referencing "The D.E.N.N.I.S System" on social media posts of them together, not because they find it offensive but only because the joke has been worn out due to literally dozens of people commenting it every time.
56	*** The guys have expressed regret multiple times over accidentally giving Kaitlin an uncomfortable time onset in the early days, like when she's covered in blood late Season 5, and the producer spread her scenes out during the day instead of all at once, so it was solidifying on her skin.
57	* CreatorBreakdown: Glenn Howerton left the show after Season 12 because he was starting to feel burned out creatively. He returned in Season 13 as an actor (albeit in a [[CommutingOnABus limited capacity]]) when he was told that the writers were struggling to write plots without Dennis, who is often the leader and dissenting voice among the group. He enjoyed the experience so much that he returned to the show full-time in Season 14, eventually coming back to write in Season 15 as well.
58	* CreatorsFavoriteEpisode: Glenn Howerton, Rob [=McElhenney=] and Charlie Day cite "The Gang Sells Out" as one of the show's most well-constructed episodes and hold it up as one of its best over a decade later.
59	* TheDanza: Charlie Kelly is played by ''Charlie'' Day, Mac is played by Rob ''Mc''Elhenney[[note]]whom they note in the podcast was actually nicknamed "Mac" until the series took off[[/note]], and recurring character Artemis is played by ''Artemis'' Pebdani. Specifically averted by Dennis, as Glenn Howerton did not want his real name associated so closely with the character. The character of Mac was also originally intended to be played by David Hornsby, making his status as this trope slightly coincidental.
60	* DawsonCasting:
61	** 12-year old Sun-Li from [[Recap/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphiaS03E06TheGangSolvesNorthKorea "The Gang Solves the North Korea Situation"]] is played by 24-year old Tania Gunadi.
62	** PlayedForLaughs in "The Gang Buys a Roller Rink", where the main cast, who were in their mid-forties at the time, play their characters in a flashback to when they were in their early 20s (and, in Danny [=DeVito's=] case, his mid-fifties). No attempt is made to make them look younger apart from changing their hair and wardrobe (except for [[SameClothesDifferentYear Charlie]], which even gets pointed out after flashing back to the present), though this, of course, just adds to the joke.
63	* {{Defictionalization}}:
64	** The Dick Towels that the gang invent in "Paddy's Pub: Home of the Original Kitten Mittens" became official show merchandise purchasable at dicktowel.com.
65	** Greenman, which has not only been defictionalized but is well on its way to cultural phenomenon status.
66	** Recipes for "milk steak", a dish Charlie apparently made up in "The Waitress Is Getting Married", have appeared online.
67	** And now fans have done the same for Rum Ham (not to be confused with an existing recipe for the wussy rum-''glazed'' ham). It tastes pretty awful, but it'll get you good and wasted.
68	*** In fact, [[https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/730491/paddys-pub-the-worst-bar-in-philadelphia-by-laurel-randolph/ a whole cookbook]] for recipes for all the various foods/drinks that have been made on the show is now available.
69	** Multiple fanmade rulebooks and game kits for [=CharDee=] [=MacDennis=] now exist.
70	* DescendedCreator: Series creator Creator/RobMcElhenney plays Mac. Creator/CharlieDay and Creator/GlennHowerton are also heavily involved in the creative process and play Charlie and Dennis, respectively.
71	* DevelopmentGag: A subtle one in "The Gang Beats Boggs". The show was originally going to be set in Los Angeles and named "It's Always Sunny on Television", in reference to LA's picturesque weather. When Charlie and Mac get to LA in "The Gang Beats Boggs", Mac pointedly states how gloomy the overcast city looks.
72	* DiagnosisOfGod: Glenn Howerton has said repeatedly that while Dennis is a [[{{Narcissist}} great]] [[SerialRapist many]] [[SerialKiller things]] and deeply awful and selfish, he’s not actually a sociopath or psychopath. He’s more fragile and pitiful than anything else, blustering in rage because he has no idea what to do with the big feelings in him, and does love the people around him even if he takes out all of his shit on them. He also makes the point that Dennis is a TakeThat and extreme version of pick-up artists, and those guys usually aren’t socio/psychopaths.
73	* DistancedFromCurrentEvents:
74	** In June 2020, Creator/{{Hulu}} removed five episodes[[note]]"America’s Next Top Paddy’s Billboard Model Contest", "Dee Reynolds: Shaping America’s Youth", "The Gang Recycles Their Trash", "The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 6" and "Dee Day"[[/note]] that depicted characters (mostly Sweet Dee) doing {{Blackface}} and {{Brownface}} following the George Floyd protests and the amplified Black Lives Matter movement. Strangely, the episodes "The Gang Gets Racist"[[note]]the very first episode where Charlie is MistakenForRacist when he says the N-word within earshot of The Waitress[[/note]], "The Gang Finds a Dumpster Baby"[[note]]which includes a short scene of the baby getting put in brownface after the talent agency tells Dee and Mac that they're not interested in white babies[[/note]], and "Hero or Hate Crime?"[[note]]where Charlie again says the N-word with a hard "R"[[/note]] are still available, even though the racial content on those episodes is more controversial than a brief scene of a character in black- or brownface. This was referenced in the Season 15 episode "The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 7". This was also done for the [=DVD=]s for Season 14, which ''also'' excluded "Dee Day" from their release. This made that episode the only one in the series not viewable on DVD.
75	* DyeingForYourArt: Rob [=McElhenney=] didn't like how sitcom actors always start looking better as the seasons go by because the stars are more successful and have more money, so he gained ''60 pounds'' and spent Season 7 as "Fat Mac". In Season 13, he did the opposite and put himself in a hardcore six-month workout regimen to become chiseled.
76	* EnforcedMethodActing:
77	** In "The World Series Defense", Glenn was genuinely irritated with Charlie Day handing him papers he didn't need because it was both unscripted and was causing him to stumble on his lines. However, he recognized that it was funny, so he stayed in character while reacting.
78	** The extras playing the prisoners at the end of "Mac Finds his Pride" watched Rob [=McElhenney=]'s dance performance on a projector screen, and knew only that he would be dancing and they were to applaud, but not what form his act would take. Their expressions of beatific awe are totally real.
79	* ExecutiveMeddling:
80	** Frank was only added to the cast because FX told them that if they didn't bring on a well-known name to help boost ratings, the show would be canceled.
81	** The show wasn't allowed to use either the Phillie Phanatic or Holiday Inn names in "The World Series Defense". As such, the BlandNameProduct versions the Phillie Phrenetic and Ollidy Inn were used instead. Charlie actually breaks the fourth wall to lampshade this as he's being dragged out of the courtroom, where he brings up that the Phille Phrenetic ''should'' be called the Phanatic but can't be because they'll get sued by MLB.
82	** Similarly to the above, a story involving The Gang getting onto ''Series/FamilyFeud'' was ultimately vetoed by FX, despite the support of ''Feud'''s producers. It was later produced in Season 10 with a BlandNameProduct version of ''Feud'', complete with Creator/KeeganMichaelKey [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed impersonating]] Steve Harvey.
83	** In "The Gang Gets Whacked" parts one and two, Charlie insists that he and Dee rub cocaine on their gums because only addicts snort it. This was written in because the network would not allow the show to portray characters snorting cocaine.
84	* ExiledFromContinuity: Averted; Creator/RobMcElhenney got the idea for Charlie's "Green Man" persona from an unnamed friend, who donned a green zentai suit while attending a football game with [=McElhenney=]. [=McElhenney=] would later pay his friend an undisclosed amount of money in exchange for the rights to his "character" so that he could use the concept in later episodes.
85	* FunnyCharacterBoringActor: With how uncouth and maniacal their characters can be, whenever the cast members show up in an interview it can be surprising how shy and... wholesome they actually are.
86	* GodNeverSaidThat: Since "The High School Reunion" two-parter, the theory that the Waitress' real name is Nikki Potnick based on what appeared to be a hidden BrickJoke (Frank steals a name tag with the name to break into the reunion early on into the episode and later the Waitress remarks that she wasn't able to find a name tag with her name on it when she arrived at the reunion) became incredibly popular. Since then, the cast have stated multiple times that the Waitress' name is ''not'' Nikki Potnick and that the two seemingly connected gags were unrelated (Nikki Potnick was actually an obscure CallBack to an earlier mentioned classmate of the Gang in "Underage Drinking: A National Concern”, while the Waitress not getting a name tag was a riff on her status as a ForgettableCharacter) but the misconception continues to often be purported as fact.
87	* HideYourPregnancy:
88	** Dee's pregnancy in Season 6 was written in because Kaitlin Olson was pregnant. The show did hide her bump before it was revealed she was pregnant in "Who Got Dee Pregnant". They actually pulled it off, though; she wears looser fitting tops beforehand and when she is at the pool in "Mac and Charlie: White Trash" she is shown holding a towel wrapped around her to hide her stomach, along with shooting her with only her upper torso above the water.
89	** Creator/MaryElizabethEllis appear much in Season 7 and wears a loose dress in "The Gang Goes to the Jersey Shore" to hide her pregnancy, although her bump is still noticeable.
90	* IAmNotSpock: While Glenn, Rob and Charlie have fun describing their characters as like {{evil twin}}s of themselves, they do get bored of the same old memes [[note]]so no “the DENNIS system works” on pictures of Glenn and Jill, or “the Waitress lifted the restraining order/is on ecstasy again ” on Charlie and Mary Elizabeth[[/note]] when it involves their wives. Rob at conventions will call you out if you make bird jokes at Kaitlin.
91	* IncestuousCasting: A minor case. Lucy [=DeVito=], Danny [=DeVito=]'s daughter, plays the waitress whom Frank ogles in "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom".
92	* IronyAsSheIsCast:
93	** One aspect of Dee's character is her inability to either be funny or play a convincing character. Kaitlin Olson was a part of the legendary improv/sketch group The Groundlings before joining the show.
94	** Charlie's sole love interest in the series is [[NoNameGiven The Waitress]]; he's a StalkerWithACrush toward her while she treats him with barely-disguised contempt at best and utter hatred at worst. They're played by Charlie Day and Mary Elizabeth Ellis, who have been HappilyMarried since 2006, and have been together since 2001 (four years before the show began).
95	** Creator/KaitlinOlson and Creator/RobMcElhenney got [[RomanceOnTheSet married shortly into the run of the show]]; however, their characters of Dee and Mac have the least amount of screentime together and slightly more vitriolic interactions; trading insults and Mac even trying to strangle Dee a few times.
96	* LifeImitatesArt: In the summer of 2020, Philadelphia made national news over trash stockpiling on the streets due to sanitation workers on strike. It was not lost on the Internet that it was that exact situation that kicks off "The Gang Recycles Their Trash" and noted that the people of Philly could turn to a couple of local bar owners with a limo to take their garbage.
97	* MagnumOpusDissonance: While 'Magnum Opus' might be overstating it, Glenn Howerton has said that the cast love the episodes "The Gang Cracks the Liberty Bell" and "Frank's Brother", which are among the most notoriously divisive episodes in the series.
98	* MissingEpisode: "Dee Day" is the only episode in the series to not be on Hulu/streaming or ever released on DVD. The only way to acquire it legally is via a purchase on Google.
99	* NoBudget: The show's first season was produced at 1/3 of a typical network sitcom's budget, starred unknown actors and during production, Rob [=McElhenney=] still kept his day job as a waiter. It was also noted on the ''Sunny'' podcast that the network didn't pay for offices and didn't always supply props, so they wrote the first season in their apartments and frequently wore their own clothing and used their own possessions as props. Eventually, the budget increased with each successive season.
100	* OnlyBarelyRenewed: The first season got some positive reviews but FX was a new channel and almost no one was watching it. The network president was optimistic about the show and had ran Creator/DannyDeVito's production company previously, suggested bringing him into the cast. [=McElheney=] was against it for the StuntCasting and felt the current cast was working great, but when the alternative was {{cancellation}} he relented. This turned out far better than anyone could have imagined.
101	* TheOtherDarrin: An [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3qIaBn3nQo eighth season promo]] uses this as a gag.
102	* OutOfOrder: "A Very Sunny Christmas" was released on DVD during Season 5, but airs on TV and streaming services as the finale of Season 6. Although the show swaps the order of episodes all the time, what makes this jarring is that Mac's house, including his old bedroom, is perfectly intact despite burning to the ground in the aptly-titled episode "Mac's Mom Burns Her House Down".
103	* ThePeteBest: Jordan Reid played the role of Sweet Dee in the pilot, and was also dating Rob [=McElhenney=] at the time, before dropping out due to their breakup and being replaced by Creator/KaitlinOlson when the show was picked up for television.
104	* PromotedFanboy:
105	** Creator/GuillermoDelToro made a few appearances as the [=McPoyle=] family's insane patriarch Pappy [=McPoyle=]. Apparently, while they were working on ''Film/PacificRim'', Del Toro mentioned being a big fan of the series to Charlie Day, and he liked Charlie's rat-killing monologue in "Charlie Kelly: King of the Rats" so much that it was the reason he cast Day in the film.
106	** Creator/DavidBenioff and Creator/DBWeiss were such big fans of the show that they wrote the episode "Flowers For Charlie". They also made appearances in "The Gang Goes to a Water Park".
107	** Writer Megan Ganz was a massive fan of ''Always Sunny'' even before joining the production team, with the first script that ever got her hired in Hollywood being written on spec for the show and Creator/KaitlinOlson being named as one of her biggest comedic influences. It took her eight years of constantly bringing up how much she loved the show while working on other projects to finally be offered the chance to become a part of it herself.
108	** When asked what show he would love to act on other than ''Series/BreakingBad'' [[https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1kaxje/comment/cbn37es/ during a Reddit AMA]], Creator/AaronPaul gave ''It's Always Sunny'' as his top answer. He would get to do so in "Celebrity Booze: The Ultimate Cash Grab", alongside Breaking Bad costar Bryan Cranston.
109	* RealLifeRelative:
110	** The "Chief" Expy in the ''Film/OneFlewOverTheCuckoosNest'' parody is played by the son of Creator/WillSampson, the actor who played "Chief" in the movie.
111	** Danny [=DeVito=]'s daughter [[Creator/LucyDeVito Lucy]] has had a couple of one-shot cameos in "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom" and "The Gang Finds a Dumpster Baby".
112	** Mary Elizabeth Ellis is married to Charlie Day in real life and had been dating for a few years before the series began, which makes the whole RunningGag of Charlie stalking The Waitress and her being repulsed by him incredible meta-irony.
113	** Glenn Howerton is married to Jill Latiano, who played Kaylee the pharmacist in "The DENNIS System". When she appears on the podcast for said episode, she, Glenn and Charlie declare “oh the DENNIS System must work” comments on every picture of the couple a DiscreditedMeme.
114	** In the stage version of ''The Nightman Cometh'', Creator/RheaPerlman (Creator/DannyDevito's wife) plays Gladys. Perlman later appeared in the episode "The Gang Gets Cursed" in Season 16.
115	** The crackhead who robs Dee and Mac in "Bums: Making A Mess All Over The City" is played by Rob’s father, Bob.
116	** The kid Frank interacts with at the water fountain in "Risk E. Rat's Pizza and Amusement Center" is played by Rob [=McElhenney=] and Kaitlin Olson's youngest son Leo.
117	* RealitySubtext:
118	** Rob [=McElhenney=]'s mother came out as a lesbian when he was eight, and he would spend the rest of his childhood being raised by both his dad and his mom and her partner, and two of his younger brothers also came out as gay.
119	** In “Dennis and Dee Go On Welfare”, Dee pretends to be mentally disabled by wearing a bicycle helmet. Kaitlin Olson actually did suffer a skull fracture in a traumatic childhood bicycle accident.
120	** Not nearly as bad as Dennis, but it’s a RunningGag on the IASIP podcast that Glenn is very weird about diets, depriving himself of decent food about 90% of the time.
121	* RomanceOnTheSet: Rob [=McElhenney=] and Kaitlin Olson (Mac and Sweet Dee) met through the show, started dating in 2006, and have been married since 2008.
122	* ScheduleSlip: Season 10 did not premiere in fall 2014. It ended up premiering in January 2015.
123	* SeparatedAtBirthCasting: Glenn Howerton and Kaitlin Olson pass fairly well as twins. Danny Devito was actually opposed to playing Frank at first because he couldn't fathom being the father of two kids who were tall and fair-haired, thus was grateful to have it revealed that their mom was a whore.
124	* StarMakingRole: For Creator/CharlieDay, Creator/GlennHowerton, Creator/RobMcElhenney, and Creator/KaitlinOlson. Of particular note is [=McElhenney=], who went from being completely out of work as an actor to being the creator, writer and star of a long-running television series.
125	* StuntCasting: FX executives told Rob [=McElhenney=] that they would cancel the show unless they brought on a famous actor to draw in more viewers. They eventually settled on Danny [=DeVito=]. This is one of the most successful examples of stunt casting in television history, turning a show with middling reviews and poor ratings into a critically-acclaimed show with high ratings and is now currently the longest running live action sitcom.
126	* ThrowItIn:
127	** Glenn on the podcast mentioned that the pilot line “the boys are out tonight” with that little spin was just to make Charlie and Rob laugh.
128	** A ''lot'' of the dialogue, especially the Gang's arguments with each other, is improvised or only partially scripted. This is why Dee has so many one-on-one scenes with Charlie: Kaitlin Olson, her actress, is the best among the group at not {{Corpsing}} at Charlie Day's bizarre speeches.
129	** Creator/RobMcElhenney, Creator/GlennHowerton and Creator/CharlieDay have gone on record saying that many of the Gang's shared behavioral tics and [[RunningGag Running Gags]] began as them unconsciously copying something they had seen each other doing that they found funny during takes.
130	** In "The World Series Defense", Charlie handing Dennis papers he doesn't actually need was unscripted; Charlie just handed Glenn a paper for no reason, but when he realized that it was starting to genuinely irritate him, [[{{Troll}} Charlie kept doing it]] to turn it into a gag.
131	** Frank's recurrent RecklessGunUsage was spawned from Charlie Day deciding to add gunshot sound effects to a scene where he was waving a gun around as a joke. Both he and Rob [=McElhenney=] found it funny and it was left in.
132	** The iconic "Pepe Silvia" in "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack" was actually written in the script as "Pepe Silva" but was changed to the former on the day of filming due to Charlie Day consistently using it by mistake.
133	** Much of Wrestling/RoddyPiper's dialogue as Da Maniac was improvised.
134	* TransCharacterCisActor: Cis actor Creator/BrittanyDaniel as "Carmen the Tranny". The show creator Creator/RobMcElhenney has gone on record saying he regrets the insensitive writing around the character and would cast a trans actor if the show were made now, also expressing regret about using trans slurs.
135	* UnderageCasting: Creator/JonPolito, who plays Frank's older brother, is actually younger than Danny [=DeVito=].
136	* WordOfGay: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzHPifzNh4Y According to Glenn Howerton]] talking on a Comic-Con panel, all of the main characters are "vaguely bisexual": "I don't even know if it's 'vaguely.'" He voiced a similar sentiment in an interview on ''Conan'', claiming that all the characters are "a little ambiguously gay."
137	* WordOfGod: Glenn Howerton and Kaitlin Olson freely admit that their [[BrotherSisterIncest characters]] are secretly in love with each other.
138	* WriteWhatYouKnow: The DENNIS System, according to the creators, is a TakeThat to the pick-up artist tactics they saw in the early 2000s. Especially ''Literature/{{The Game\|2005}}''.
139	* YouLookFamiliar:
140	** Michael Naughton first appeared as the HR Director that hires Mac and Charlie in the mail room in "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack" before getting the recurring role as the Waiter. [[WhatCouldHaveBeen There were actually plans to reveal that the Waiter ''was'' the HR Director having fallen on hard times, but they never came to fruition.]]
141	** Carter [=MacIntyre=] played one of the male models competing in "America's Next Top Paddy's Billboard Model Contest" before reappearing nearly a decade later as the male stripper Dee ruins the life of in "[=PTSDee=]". Similar to the above example, [[WordOfGod Glenn Howerton has it as his personal headcanon that the two are the same character]].
142
143	!!Miscellaneous fun facts:
144	* When series creator Rob [=McElhenney=] was asked a question about his character Mac in a featurette, he replied "[[ObfuscatingStupidity I don't know]]... I just show up, say my fuckin' lines, and go home."[[note]]This was made in jest, of course; as one of the creative forces behind the show and a frequent writer, Rob carries a lot of responsibility.[[/note]]
145	* For a while, Charlie's play ''The Nightman Cometh'' actually toured various cities around Philadelphia with all of the original cast.
146	* [[https://www.indiewire.com/2022/08/always-sunny-pranked-danny-devito-with-fake-episode-1234755942/ Rob, Charlie, and Glenn once pulled an April Fool's Day prank on Danny [=DeVito=]]] by sending him a fake script that involved Frank getting busted soliciting a prostitute and going to jail. While in jail, Frank is raped by various inmates and even the prison guards; this horrified the usually game [=DeVito=], who came within a hair's breadth of calling his lawyer to see if he could get out of having to perform these scenes. [=DeVito=] made it to the end of the script, where one of the men who had been assaulting Frank threw him to the floor and whispered in his ear, "April fools, bitch", revealing the whole thing was an elaborate prank. Charlie Day also told this story on ''Conan''.
147	* Rob [=McElhenney=] landed a small role on ''Series/{{LOST}}'' after meeting co-creator Damon Lindelof, who is a big fan of the show.
148	* Roddy Piper (who played Da Maniac) once heckled Danny [=DeVito=] during a guest interview that Danny was doing for WWE during "The War to Settle the Score" broadcast on MTV, which you can see [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEKw6tRnnhE here]].

Context Trivia / Itsalwayssunnyinphiladelphia