It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia Characters Will Never 'Grow And Be Better People,' Kaitlin Olson Promises
The jokes on "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" might change, but the gang is solid as a rock. They're dependably, awful, stupid, and cruel in ways that make our hearts sing and make our stomachs hurt from the ab workout that is laughing. The writers might throw our core crew through a variety of wringers every season, but you can always depend on Dennis (Glenn Howerton), Dee (Kaitlin Olson), Charlie (Charlie Day), Mac (Rob McElhenney) and Frank (Danny DeVito) to be solidly bad people. And it's a relief, frankly (sorry). The world looks considerably different than it did when "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" first premiered in 2005. I mean, think of what you were doing in 2005. What you looked like, who your friends were, what your goals were. I mean, even thinking about what I was up to in 2005 makes me genuinely shudder, but you get the point. Things were different, and yet the gang stays the same.
Just like the regulars at your favorite bar, you know, the ones who haven't changed their drink order in the last decade, Kaitlin Olson promises that Sweet Dee and the rest of the crew will never become better people. In an interview with E Online, Olson brushed off the idea that the gang would ever try and self-actualize, saying, "We want them to sort of never learn their lesson and grow and be better people."
'Always' Isn't in the Name for Nothing
In season 15 (which is a truly an insane number to type, good for them) of "It's Always Sunny" does explore the gang's beginnings in the episode "The Gang Buys a Roller Rink" and even shows them buying the infamous Paddy's Pub, but it cements the idea that so little has changed for the gang over the last 15 seasons. For Olson, that's one of the many things that makes the show so funny, especially when it comes to her character, who we learn was originally called "Sweet Dee" because she was, at one point, a truly kind person. As Olson explains it in her interview:
It's kind of one of the things that's funniest to me about my character in particular because why would this person continue to try and impress these guys and be friends with them and want their approval after all this time? She's just trying to prove herself to them and has been for 15 years. That's completely ridiculous.
"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" has cracked the code from day one. Year after year the show gets renewed, and year after year they show the gang as the truly are, a delightfully horrible group of people. It's comforting, it's dependable, and it's undeniably funny.