The Best Time Dennis Broke Character On It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia According To Fans
In 2021, "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" broke television records by becoming the longest-running live-action sitcom in U.S. history. And with a renewal in place to keep "Always Sunny" on the air through Season 18, the gang is showing no signs of stopping. Over the series' 15-and-counting seasons, Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, and Glenn Howerton have predicated "Always Sunny" on cracking each other up. "I get such pleasure out of making those guys laugh when I can," Howerton told Collider. "That makes it fun for me."
If the extensive collection of "It's Always Sunny" blooper reels are any indication, the entire cast is still making each other laugh 15 years later. Perhaps owing to the team's comfort with one another, the main cast can usually keep it together enough to stay in character for the final cut. Some foibles, however, manage to squeak through, so here's a fan-favorite time that Dennis broke character.
Dennis couldn't handle Uncle Jack
"It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" introduced the world to some of television's most loathsome personalities, the worst of whom is arguably Dennis Reynolds (Glenn Howerton). However, the prize for most appalling character was strongly contested when the seamy, deeply strange Uncle Jack (Andrew Friedman) joined the fray. With his obsession with his hands and the devastating implication that he molested Charlie, Uncle Jack has somehow emerged as a favorite fringe character, in part due to Andrew Friedman's hilariously disquieting portrayal.
A Season 6 performance from Friedman was enough to rattle Glenn Howerton, as savvy "It's Always Sunny" fans pointed out on Reddit. In the episode "Dennis Gets Divorced," Uncle Jack tries to settle two different divorce disputes, as well as a child kidnapping snafu. It's Jack's outsize interest in the children, as well as Dee's confused reaction, that leaves Glenn struggling to conceal a smile.
Although Uncle Jack is odd enough to make anyone squirm, Charlie Day admitted that he likes to write scenes in particular that push Dennis over the edge. "I always think it's great when I can put him in a situation that he cannot control, and that is constantly threatening that ego," Day told Collider. He continued, "It just makes for a funny, funny scene." Clearly, Uncle Jack was excellent fodder in that effort.
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