Posted in: FX, Hulu, Preview, streaming, TV | Tagged: always sunny, FXX, hulu, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, preview

Always Sunny: Rob McElhenney, Kaitlin Olson on Returning for Season 17

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Rob McElhenney and Kaitlin Olson on returning for Season 17 and "the beauty" of eight-episode seasons.

In case you hadn't heard, the writers' room for FXX's Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Kaitlin Olson & Danny DeVito– starring It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Season 17 is officially open – and all is right with the world. The upcoming season of the record-breaking sitcom was one of the many topics that McElhenney and Olson touched upon when they checked in with Variety's Awards Circuit Podcast. Noting that work was already underway on the scripts for the season, McElhenney explained how the eight-episode-per-season format makes it easier for The Gang to be able to come back from their respective projects and give "Always Sunny" the commitment it deserves. "The beauty of doing eight episodes a year, we feel like if the network is is still willing to pay us to make it, and the audience is still willing to show up, that we have to give our all," he shared. "So for the three months that it takes to really make 'Sunny' soup to nuts, we give everything." Olson added, "It's one of those things, like having kids, it feels like it's been on forever, and yet it's flying by."

Here's a look at McElhenney and Olson's episode of Variety's Awards Circuit Podcast in its entirety:

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Kaitlin Olson on Emmy Snub

At the Emmy Awards earlier this year, The Gang got the band back together to present the award for Outstanding Talk Series (Trevor Noah & The Daily Show would take top honors) – and to take a moment to address their topic of the show being ignored by Emmy voters. "Have you guys been doing this every year without us?" Day asked toward the opening of their segment. "I feel like we're getting the full Marvel treatment here."

To make matters even a little more insulting, this year also marked the first time that The Gang was invited to attend the biggest awards ceremony in television. DeVito really drove the point home when he reminded them that he had already won an Emmy for his work on Taxi – which would run for five seasons, picking up 34 nominations and 18 wins. "34 nominations in five years vs. zero nominations in 16 years? That math is bad!" Olson observed – before DeVito added, "Rhea [Perlman] won four for 'Cheers.'"

As fun as that was to watch, the point can't be ignored. How can a show that's run for 16 seasons (and counting) be as ignored as "Always Sunny" has been over the course of its run? "We talk about that a lot," Olson shared during an interview with Vanity Fair. "I think there are some shows where it's just decided, 'Oh, this is the hit show of the season,' and people will give it a shot. And then there are just some shows that are just like, 'No, this isn't an Emmy show.' And if you jumped in and saw a clip of our show and didn't quite understand it, you'd think this show is raunchy and gross—not appropriate and not classy and lowbrow. And the truth is, that's true. And if you really watch a full episode, it's so smart. We're making lots of statements. We are making fun of extremists. It's a lot more intelligent than people think."

Olson added, "It just became a thing where it was like, 'Oh, that show again.' People are looking at new shows. The truth is we are getting a lot of validation every single day. We have fans that will cry and shake if they take a picture [with us]. We're doing what we want to do, making a show that we're proud of and making people happy. I really am truly good. But will I take an Emmy? Yeah, I'll take an Emmy."

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