List of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia characters
The following is a list of recurring characters from the FX television series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Main characters
Charlie Kelly
Charles "Charlie" Kelly is the janitor of Paddy's Pub and a co-owner, a childhood friend of Mac, and high school friend of Dennis. Frank is his roommate and until "The Gang's Still in Ireland", it was hinted that Frank might be the biological father of Charlie. Charlie is illiterate in the English language, even though he repeatedly denies this. Charlie is a chronic user of inhalants, as well as, like the rest of the gang, an alcoholic. He deals with various psychological problems including but not limited to anger management issues and possible borderline personality disorder. Charlie often screams to get his point across and refers to the dirty work of the bar as "Charlie Work". He is shown to be the most unintelligent member of the gang, making plans that almost always end up affecting the entire plotline in a negative way. However, he has impressive musical talents and may have more intelligence than seen, rarely shown such as in "Charlie Work" where each intricate detail of his plan comes together perfectly to pass a health inspection of the bar. He often disregards the gang's attempts to control his dysfunctional behavior. While Charlie is sometimes portrayed as innocent and idealistic, nicer and less corrupt than the rest of the gang, he is still usually depicted as just as selfish, ignorant, and chaotic as the others. He is portrayed by Charlie Day.Mac
Mac is Charlie's childhood friend and Dennis' high school friend and later roommate. He is a co-owner of Paddy's Pub and its bouncer. He brags about his incredible hand-to-hand combat skills, strength, and general athletic ability though it is quite obvious he lacks any real skill or even a proper sense of balance. He is shown to be constantly seeking approval from others. Mac is openly the most self-delusional of the gang, clinging onto many fantasies, such as being tough, loved by everyone, and a good Catholic. He ignores the gang's attempts to explain otherwise.His full name is revealed to be Ronald McDonald in the seventh-season episode "The High School Reunion", though his last name involving "Mac" had been established since the introduction of his father. It is heavily implied throughout the early series that Mac is gay and in denial about it; he momentarily comes out of the closet in season 11, and again in season 12, although this time permanently. He is portrayed by Rob McElhenney.
Dennis Reynolds
Dennis Reynolds is Deandra's twin brother, main bartender, and co-owner of Paddy's Pub. He is narcissistic, superficial, twisted, and manipulative, flaws perpetuated by his Ivy League education at the University of Pennsylvania. Several episodes have put forth the implication that he is a rapist and a serial killer, and in one episode he was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and prescribed medication. His sense of self-worth is entirely dependent on what others think of his appearance and he often suggests the best way to sleep with a woman is to use his personal system, the D.E.N.N.I.S. system. Ironically, Dennis is more outwardly composed than the rest of the gang, and is usually the voice of reason when the gang is looking for a solution to their problems. However, when he is made to feel insecure or weak in any way, he tends to violently lash out and descend into screaming fits, often forgoing reason and going to extreme lengths to punish others for any perceived slight.He is also a big fan of the music of Rick Astley, Bryan Adams, and Steve Winwood. He uses the nickname "The Golden God" for himself, although no one else calls him by it. He is portrayed by Glenn Howerton.
Deandra "Sweet Dee" Reynolds
Deandra Reynolds is Dennis's twin sister, the main waitress at Paddy's Pub, and the show's main female character. She is self-absorbed, shallow, petty, and the most often subject to ridicule from the gang in many different forms: they call her extremely ugly, lazy, and completely talentless. They do not regard her as one of the gang, but rather as just someone who works for them. Despite the gang's awful treatment of her, she still involves herself in their schemes.Dee dreams of becoming an actress even though she has no acting experience or acting talent, not even being able to cry on cue. She aspires to be a comedian, although she suffers from a crippling fear of doing stand-up, often dry heaving before she can deliver the punchline. Like her brother, Dee is egotistical and often states that she thinks she is talented and pretty, although she is constantly told otherwise. She is portrayed by Kaitlin Olson.
Frank Reynolds
Frank Reynolds is the legal father of twins Dennis and Dee, and until "The Gang's Still in Ireland", was hinted at being the biological father of his roommate Charlie. In season 13, his expired driver's license displays his date of birth as July 31, 1943. He constantly carries a gun with him and frequently pulls it out for any number of situations. He used to be a successful businessman with a long history of illegal operations and dealings with sordid characters.After buying 51% of shares at Paddy's Pub, Frank is considered to be the "captain" of the gang and makes a majority of the business decisions at the bar. Though he is fairly wealthy and has the money to live elsewhere, he chooses to live in squalor with Charlie in order to add excitement to his life following his split from his ex-wife Barbara, to whom he frequently refers as his "whore wife". This lifestyle choice involves eating cat food, using a "toe knife", living on about five dollars a week, keeping a mini meats fridge in his apartment, as well as sausages in his shirt pocket, and sharing a bed with Charlie.
He is the only member of the gang to frequently involve himself with politics, often ranting about how bad the government is. He does not believe in or trust psychiatrists, and was admitted into a school for clinically insane children for a short while as a child before he was cleared of any legal mental issues, having received a certificate stating that he did not have "donkey brains". He is frequently seen in strip clubs and sleeping with prostitutes. He is portrayed by Danny DeVito.
Recurring characters
Artemis Dubois
Artemis Dubois is one of the more frequently recurring secondary characters, introduced in "Charlie Gets Cancer" as Dee's friend from her acting classes who acts out a scene from Coyote Ugly. Artemis is the closest thing to a friend that the Gang has, often joining in on their schemes purely to have a good time. She is overly serious about her craft and displays bizarre habits and outbursts. She is very open about her sexuality and often offers to perform in the nude, even when it is unnecessary. Recently, she was involved in a sexual relationship with Frank and the two shared a food fetish. She likes having sex with bacon bits in her hair because it "makes her feel like a Cobb salad." She and Frank once had makeup sex in a dumpster behind Wendy's, where she incorporated a bun. She has openly proclaimed that she has a "bleached asshole". In the season 11 episode "Being Frank" it is shown that Artemis' family is Jewish. In season 15's "The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 7" Artemis also states that she is of Persian descent.Brad Fisher
Brad Fisher is first introduced as the Waitress' fiancé in the season 5 episode "The Waitress Is Getting Married". Brad dated both Dee and the Waitress in High School but both dumped him because of his acne. He rekindles both relationships in a plot to humiliate them. Charlie gives Brad a wedding gift of a box full of hornets. Brad returns in the season 7 episode "The High School Reunion" where his face is scarred from the hornet stings. He gets "revenge" on Charlie for this by attempting to give him a wedgie when Charlie has passed out from huffing chemicals in a restroom, but is horrified when Charlie's filthy underwear splinters into shreds in his hands.Carmen
Carmen is a trans woman who was dating Mac. She first appears in the season 1 episode "Charlie Has Cancer", then reappears in the season 3 episode "Mac Is a Serial Killer". She is attractive and displays an obvious bulge in her pants. She keeps Mac interested in her with promises of undergoing gender-affirming surgery and with constant flattery of Mac's physique. In "Mac Fights Gay Marriage", she has had genital reassignment surgery and has married Nick, much to Mac's dismay. In "Dee Gives Birth" it is revealed that Carmen is the father of Dee's baby and that they used an anonymous egg donor and Dee was merely a surrogate. Dee gave the baby to Carmen and her husband Nick to raise. In the unaired pilot, Carmen is portrayed by Morena Baccarin.Duncan & Z
Duncan and his right-hand man, Z, are Frank's bizarre friends that he met under a bridge. They appear in "Charlie Kelly: King Of The Rats" where Frank wants the gang to invite them to go to the gang's luau. They later appear in "Dee Gives Birth" to provide music for their party/interrogation of Dee's potential baby's daddies. Z also makes a brief appearance in "The Gang Tries Desperately to Win an Award," as the gang attempts to show that they are a diverse crowd; the episode then makes a pointed reference to the no-Emmy wins-ever show Coleman formerly starred on, The Wire when Dennis flatly states that "black bars don't win awards." Z appeared in the season 12 premiere, "The Gang Turns Black."Da Maniac
Da Maniac is a deranged, homeless wrestler. The gang enlists him for their wrestling act in season five, and he drifts into both their timeshare scam and pyramid scheme in season 9, the latter of which he proves surprisingly adept at.Da Maniac is legitimately disturbed, with Dennis noting that "his mania is NOT confined to the ring." He is seen reacting violently over a fifteen dollar debt, foraging chestnuts for food, and displaying extreme PTSD. When the guys suggest that he adopt a terrorist-themed persona for a match, his response is simply to repeat the phrase "I'm... da Maniac" until it is clear he will not respond to anything else. When asked if he has children, he ominously replies, "Naw... not anymore." He also claims to love the members of the gang, "even with feathers," all while calling Mac the N-word behind his back.
Despite his mental illness, da Maniac is a competent wrestler, with props, determined rates, and a sense for wrestling trends. He also displays marked skills as a salesperson in "Mac and Dennis Buy a Timeshare", far outselling all other Invigaron distributors.
Piper died in 2015.