Glenn Howerton Explains Why It's Always Sunny Could End At Any Time

The fact that Rob McElhenney and Glenn Howerton's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" has been running for over 20 years (earning the accolade of being one of the longest-running live-action sitcoms ever) is a miracle in and of itself. An even bigger one is that after all this time, the Gang hasn't dropped the ball on delivering the outrageous storylines and trademark humor we're accustomed to. Sure, there were highs and lows to some extent in the 16 seasons that aired so far (the 17^th is just around the corner), and we can probably say the show is well beyond its prime at this point (which was somewhere in the middle), but if you ask me, the series never had a bad season. In fact, the longer it's on, the more I think we, as fans, appreciate all the efforts that go into making another one.

It's not easy to maintain any kind of show this long and stay as funny and relevant as "Always Sunny" has been in the past two decades, and sooner or later, it's inevitable to have the conversation that nobody wants to have about a potential goodbye that could bring something so beloved and iconic to an end. It's a question that always lingers in the back of the minds of the creators, and Howerton has shared his thoughts regarding bringing "It's Always Sunny" to a close.

Howerton, who plays Dennis on the show, gave an interview to the New York Post in which he talked about longevity and how the crew usually assesses, season after season, whether they want to keep going. As he explained, this often changes based on how they're feeling after wrapping up another season. And yes, he admits, sometimes there are thoughts along the lines of "Oh, I can't do this anymore," which is certainly normal for any actor playing the same character in the same series for 20 years. (Howerton himself almost left the show several years ago.) But on the other hand, he said there are also moments when they're genuinely "stoked" and "excited" to keep "exploring these insane characters in this insane world."

The bottom line is, as the star revealed:

"We never like to have those conversations about what the future of the show is when we finish a season. Because that's when we are like, 'Yeah, I'm done. I can't do this anymore.' It's always good to take a couple months off, and then have that conversation, like, 'Do we want to keep going?'"

Howerton also shared that they're still loving to work with each other after all these years, having a blast by goofing around and being as offensive as they possibly can. Based on his words, sure, the possibility will always be there that "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" might end suddenly — and maybe sooner than the fans would like — but given the crew's dynamics and rapport with each other, both on and off screen, my bet is on that we'll see plenty more seasons before having to say farewell to one of the best sitcoms out there. After all, Howerton didn't finish the interview with these words for no reason: "There seems to be endless ways to explore the world through these characters. So, we have no intention of stopping anytime soon."