It's Always Sunny's Entire Cast And Crew Got Robbed While Filming Mac Day In Philly
"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" might be set in a gritty dive bar in South Philly, but the series costs millions of dollars to make. The network-grade camera equipment is a huge liability, especially in a neighborhood like the one where the series is set. Much of the show is shot on the set of Paddy's Pub in Los Angeles, but some parts of "It's Always Sunny" are shot on location in Philadelphia, per Collider. The cast and crew of the FX series are unafraid of taking risks, often putting their bodies and their reputation on the line for the series, but sometimes their bold authenticity comes at a price.
The only member of the "It's Always Sunny" cast who's actually from Philly is showrunner Rob McElhenney, who also stars in the show as Mac opposite series co-creators Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton. Each character in Paddy's crew gets one day per year where they can tell everyone else in the gang what to do. In the season 9 episode "Mac Day," it was only fitting that they visit some of McElhenney's favorite spots in his hometown.
"I don't know if kids do this anymore, but we used to go to Lemon Hill in Fairmount Park after school to hang," he told Temple News. On Mac Day, McElhenney dragged the cast and crew to the historic Strawberry Mansion in Fairmount Park to shoot a portion of the season 9 episode. A nearby bridge serves as the site for Mac's latest elaborate stunt in his homemade "Jackass" rip-off Project Badass. Although it was a fun homecoming for the South Philly native, the plan to shoot on location backfired in a major way.
All of their cars got broken into at Fairmount Park
Although shooting in real Philly locations like the park where McElhenney hung out as a kid gives the show an authentic flavor, it can also come at a cost. The shoot for "Mac Day" turned into a disaster when every member of the cast and the crew was robbed. The thieves didn't discriminate against out-of-towners, either — even the seasoned Philly locals got hit.
"Do you remember what happened that day when we were shooting at Strawberry Mansion when everybody parked in the parking lot and then we went and we shot and we came back to the cars?" McElhenney asked his fellow cast members at a live taping of "The Always Sunny Podcast," per The Philadelphia Inquirer. "All of the cars got broken into. Every single person got robbed — and these are members of the crew who are from Philly!"
The series didn't stop shooting on location after the robbery, though. Even though making the show in a high-crime neighborhood like South Philly presents a risk, grounding "It's Always Sunny" in its real-life setting in is very important to McElhenney. The sitcom was actually first pitched as a show about struggling actors in Los Angeles. Changing the premise was the network's idea, but changing the location was a bit of a struggle.
"FX is based in L.A., and originally, they wanted to keep us close," the "Mythic Quest" star recalled in his interview with Temple News. "Since we were a new series, they didn't want us running the whole show. It's much easier to film parts in L.A. than to move the entire production to Philly. But the network is really supportive, and we film a lot in Philly. Philly is a major character in the show."
Do Philly natives hate It's Always Sunny?
But the question remains — did the thieves have a vendetta against "It's Always Sunny," or were they just the unfortunate victims of an untargeted crime?
It might be the city of brotherly love, but when it comes to criticism, the people of Philadelphia have not been known to hold back. Fans of the Philadelphia Eagles have been known to boo almost anything, from Donovan McNabb in 1999 to Santa Claus in 1968. In fact, they boo so much that a bit of healthy backlash has become a part of the culture.
"You have to understand that the boos and the laughter are the same thing. It's all love," McElhenney explained when Howerton announced to the Philadelphia crowd that after 16 seasons of "It's Always Sunny," he had never had their most famous local cuisine — a Philly cheese steak (via The Philadelphia Inquirer).
Although it's possible that some locals don't like the way that the FX series portrays their city, the cast and crew have mostly experienced a positive reception. In fact, many of the show's first supporters were Philadelphia natives who enjoyed seeing their city depicted on-screen. "Philly has definitely embraced the show," McElhenney confirmed in a 2008 interview before the series had become a global sensation. "Every time I go home, it certainly seems like the show is growing. So I think people get the joke."
Some of the on-location shoots have even garnered friendly audiences, like Dennis and Dee's rendition of "Just a Friend" in the season 2 episode "Dennis and Dee Go on Welfare." Kaitlin Olson has fond memories of a crowd of Philadelphians gathering to watch the shoot. "Singing [Biz] on the steps in Philadelphia was awesome," the actress recounted to Elle. "I remember it was hot and locals were gathered around watching. That was a really fun moment."
Wherever they go, the Sunny cast can't escape Philadelphia
McElhenney might be the only Philly native on the cast, but the rest of the "It's Always Sunny" gang are now considered honorary Philadelphians. The city embraces them as locals, and even when they step outside of it, they are forever linked with Philly in the minds of their fans. Even Danny DeVito, who was a household name before the series began, is associated with Philadelphia everywhere he goes. "I'm from Jersey, a little bit outside from Philly," the star explained in an interview with Showbiz Junkies:
"But wherever I go now, since the show's been on and very popular all over the world basically, I mean, people will say to me things like, 'Go Philly! Hey, Philly!' something like that, you know. So, I think all the people that I've encountered so far, no matter how base we are, they just think of it as kind of a cool thing and a feather in their cap, Philly people. They like our show, I think. And we like Philly too."
There might be only be five members of the main cast, but Philadelphia is the unofficial sixth member of the gang. As McElhenney says, it's certainly a character on the show, and to stop shooting the series on location would be like replacing one of the actors with AI. "It's Always Sunny" has to feel true to Philadelphia, and if that means that the crew gets robbed from time to time, then so be it. Let's hope that next time they shoot at Fairmount Park, they bring some security with them!