Rob McElhenney | |
|---|---|
.jpg) McElhenney in 2016 | |
| Born | Robert McElhenney III (1977-04-14)April 14, 1977 (age 47) Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Education | Temple University (dropped out) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Marcus McElhenney (cousin) |
Robert McElhenney III (/ˈmækəlhɛni/MAK-əl-hen-ee; born April 14, 1977) is an American actor, screenwriter and producer. He is best known for his role asMac on theFX/FXX comedy seriesIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005–present), a show he created and co-developed withCharlie Day andGlenn Howerton and on which he continues to serve as an executive producer and writer. He is also known for playing Ian Grimm on theApple TV+ comedy seriesMythic Quest (2020–present), which he co-created with Day andMegan Ganz as executive producers.
In September 2020, McElhenney became the co-owner of the Welsh football clubWrexham A.F.C. withRyan Reynolds; this was covered in the Emmy Award-winningFX sports documentary seriesWelcome to Wrexham (2022–present), for which he won anEmmy Award as one of the executive producers.
Robert McElhenney III was born inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 14, 1977. Both of McElhenney's parents were of Irish descent.[1] He was raisedCatholic.[2] Through his father, he is a cousin ofOlympic rowerMarcus McElhenney. When he was eight years old, his parents divorced after his mothercame out as alesbian.[2] He and his two younger brothers were primarily raised by their father, though their parents remained close after the divorce.[2] His two brothers aregay,[2] and he describes himself as having "always been part of thegay community".[3] Through his father's subsequent marriage, he also has a half-sister and step-brother.
McElhenney attendedWaldron Mercy Academy andSt. Joseph's Preparatory School in Philadelphia.[4][5][6] He later briefly attendedTemple University[7] and then temporarily lived on theFordham University campus with friends, but chose not to enroll.[2]
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McElhenney had his first major acting role with a small part in the 1997 filmThe Devil's Own, though his role was cut out of the final edit. He followed this with small parts in the filmsA Civil Action,Wonder Boys, andThirteen Conversations About One Thing. He later had more substantial parts in the filmsLatter Days andThe Tollbooth, and a guest role in theLaw & Order episode "Thrill". When he was 21, a screenplay he wrote was optioned withPaul Schrader attached to direct, but the project fell through after a year of edits and rewrites.[8]
Initially based inNew York City, McElhenney moved toLos Angeles at the age of 25.[8] When he was 27 years old, he was waiting tables between acting jobs and had metGlenn Howerton through his agent, as well as meetingCharlie Day while shooting a horror film in New York City.[8] His idea for a sitcom starring himself, Howerton, and Day came from a suggestion originally made by one of his closest childhood friends.[2] The pilot was filmed on a budget of $200 and pitched to various cable networks.[9] After receiving offers from many of the networks, McElhenney chose to sign withFX as they allowed him more creative freedom, and the show was eventually titledIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. McElhenney was contracted as its showrunner, while both Howerton and Day were listed as executive producers.[8]
McElhenney has said that 50 weeks per year are taken up by acting, producing, and writing forIt's Always Sunny, though he did find time to appear in theLost episode "Not in Portland". This was a result of him meetingLost co-creatorDamon Lindelof, who is a fan ofIt's Always Sunny. He later reprised hisLost role in another episode. He is a fan ofGame of Thrones and said that he was thrilled when the series' creatorsDavid Benioff andD.B. Weiss asked him if they could write an episode ofIt's Always Sunny. He and his co-producers accepted the offer,[10] resulting in the episode "Flowers for Charlie" in 2013. In 2019, he had a cameo appearance as an extra in theGame of Thrones episode "Winterfell".
In July 2015, McElhenney was confirmed byMojang as the director of the upcoming animatedMinecraft movie,[11] but he later left the project.[12]
In 2017, McElhenney appeared in a guest role as a police officer in the acclaimedFargo episode "The Law of Non-Contradiction". He received praise for his performance from critics, who saw many of his character's traits and plot points as references toIt's Always Sunny.[13][14]
In 2020, McElhenney co-created theApple TV+ comedy seriesMythic Quest alongsideCharlie Day andMegan Ganz. He also stars as Ian Grimm on the show and serves as a writer and executive producer. The series has received critical acclaim, with the review aggregation websiteRotten Tomatoes giving the series an 89% approval rating.[15]
Since November 2021, McElhenney, Day and Howerton have been releasingThe Always Sunny Podcast.[16][17] The three discuss topics of all sorts with the general framing of the podcast usually focusing on the creators discussing each episode of the show, sharing behind-the-scenes information, and what was going on to inspire the episodes. Cast members from the show also appear to discuss their own characters, and how they got into the show.
In 2009, McElhenney and his wifeKaitlin Olson along with others purchased Skinner's Bar, now Mac's Tavern at 226 Market St inPhiladelphia.[18][19][20]
On September 23, 2020, it was announced by the Wrexham Supporters Trust that a business partnership had been formed by McElhenney and Canadian actorRyan Reynolds and that they were in talks to purchase the Welsh football teamWrexham AFC.[21] On November 16, 2020, it was confirmed that the two had successfully taken over the club after receiving the backing of the Wrexham Supporters Trust.[22][23] On April 22, 2023, Wrexham achieved promotion toLeague Two and also becameNational League champions under their ownership. This marked a return for Wrexham to theEnglish Football League after a 15 year absence.[24] On April 13, 2024, Wrexham secured promotion toLeague One finishing 2nd in League Two and securing automatic league promotion. In April 2024 some ofClub Necaxa's owners purchased a 5% stake in Wrexham, reciprocated by Reynolds and McElhenney purchasing a minority ownership stake in Club Necaxa.[25]
On June 7, 2022, McElhenney announced the launch of a new entertainment-tech company named Adim, co-founded by himself, Chase Rosenblatt, Melissa Kaspers, Spencer Marell, andRichard Rosenblatt.[26]
In 2023, McElhenney along with hisIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia co-starsGlenn Howerton andCharlie Day launched an Irish American Whiskey company to bottle the spirit ofPaddy's Pub, named Four Walls as a tribute to the four walls of the bar they call home on the show.[27][28]
On June 26, 2023, it was announced that both Ryan Reynolds and McElhenney were part of an investor group that bought a 24% equity stake in theAlpine F1 Team.[29]
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McElhenney hired actressKaitlin Olson to playDee Reynolds onIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and became romantically interested in her "aroundseason 2" of the series.[30] He has called her "the funniest woman in show business".[8] They were married inCalifornia on September 27, 2008.[31] They have two sons.[32][33] Olson went into labor with their first son while at aLos Angeles Dodgers home game against thePhiladelphia Phillies.[32]
In July 2023, McElhenney announced that he had been diagnosed with "a host ofneurodevelopmental disorders andlearning disabilities".[34]
In preparation for theseventh season ofIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, McElhenney put on 60 lb (27 kg) of fat and let his beard grow out to give extra humor to his character and add a new comedic direction for the season. His co-starCharlie Day described the weight gain as "disgusting" and said that the rest of the cast was "a little on the fence about it for his own personal health and safety". McElhenney subsequently lost 23 lb (10 kg) in a month after the season was finished filming, and lost the rest of the weight later in the year in time to film the next season.[35][36]
In preparation for the show's13th season, he transformed his body again, though this time he became excessively fit and athletic. He later joked in anInstagram post, "Look, it's not that hard. All you need to do is lift weights six days a week, stop drinking alcohol, don't eat anything after 7pm, don't eat any carbs or sugar at all, in fact just don't eat anything you like, get the personal trainer fromMagic Mike, sleep nine hours a night, run three miles a day, and have a studio pay for the whole thing over a six to seven month span. I don't know why everyone's not doing this. It's a super realistic lifestyle and an appropriate body image to compare oneself to. #hollywood ".[37]
McElhenney has named theMarx Brothers,Woody Allen,Carl Reiner,Norman Lear,George Carlin,Gary David Goldberg,Larry David, andDavid Sedaris as his comedic influences.[38]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | The Devil's Own | Kevin | Scenes deleted[2] |
| 1998 | A Civil Action | Teenager on property | |
| 2000 | Wonder Boys | Student | Scenes deleted[2] |
| 2001 | Thirteen Conversations About One Thing | Chris Hammond | |
| Campfire Stories | Ricky | ||
| 2002 | Long Story Short | Trent | |
| 2003 | Latter Days | Elder Harmon | |
| 2004 | The Tollbooth | Simon Stanton | |
| 2024 | Deadpool & Wolverine | Time Variance Authority Soldier | Cameo |
| Year | Title | Credited as | Role | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Writer | Director | Producer | Actor | ||||
| 1997 | Law & Order | No | No | No | Yes | Joey Timon | Episode: "Thrill" |
| 2004 | ER | No | No | No | Yes | Andy Fesh | Episode: "Where There's Smoke" |
| 2005–present | It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | Ronald "Mac" McDonald | Also creator |
| 2007–2010 | Lost | No | No | No | Yes | Aldo | 2 episodes |
| 2011–2012 | How to Be a Gentleman | No | No | Consulting | No | — | 9 episodes |
| 2012 | Unsupervised | No | No | Executive | No | — | 13 episodes |
| 2014–2017 | The Mindy Project | No | No | No | Yes | Louis "Lou" Tookers[39] | 4 episodes[39][40] |
| 2015 | On the Record with Mick Rock. | No | No | Executive | No | — | 6 episodes |
| 2017 | Fargo | No | No | No | Yes | Officer Oscar Hunt | Episode: "The Law of Non-Contradiction" |
| 2018–2019 | The Cool Kids | No | No | Co-executive[41] | No | — | 22 episodes |
| 2019 | Game of Thrones | No | No | No | Yes | Ironborn soldier | Episode: "Winterfell" |
| 2020–present | Mythic Quest | Yes | Yes | Executive | Yes | Ian Grimm | Also co-creator |
| 2022–present | Welcome to Wrexham | No | No | Executive | Yes | Himself | Also co-creator |
| 2025 | Abbott Elementary | No | No | No | Yes | Ronald "Mac" McDonald | Episode: "Volunteers" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–present | The Always Sunny Podcast | Himself/host | 77 episodes |
| Year | Artist | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Imagine Dragons | "Follow You" | Co-starring with Kaitlin Olson, both appearing as themselves[42] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | FIFA 23 | Himself | Voice role[43] |
| International | |
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| National | |
