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

Always Sunny Was "Really Happy Accident": Olson on Sweet Dee Audition

FXX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Kaitlin Olson on how a "happy accident" led to her not passing on auditioning for Dee Reynolds.

Thanks to a recently released Vanity Fair profile/interview, we were treated to some interesting personal insights into FXX's Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Kaitlin Olson & Danny DeVito– starring It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia from Olson. Olson explained why "Sweet Dee" Reynolds is "always going to be there" for her – even "into her 90s." In addition, Olson shared why she believes the longest-running television sitcom in U.S. history has never been nominated for an Emmy Award – let alone walk away with the gold. But for this go-around, Olson is taking us back to the days when she was auditioning for the role of "Sweet Dee" – and why she came close to stepping away from the role.

"Well, 'Sunny' was a really happy accident. That audition was incredible because the sides weren't for Dee. [Laughs] They changed a scene that was between Dennis and Charlie because they didn't have any funny Dee scenes, so they gave me that. But I didn't know that. So, obviously, for the audition, they changed the name, and it was funny!" Olson shared about her initial audition, which would lead to a chance for her to make the role her own. "I loved it, I did it, and then Rob [McElhenney] said, 'Go ahead and put the sides down, and we're going to do the same scene, but say whatever you want. Same scene, but say whatever you want.' No one had ever done that before, and I was like, 'What?' It was the most fun audition I ever had. I got in the car and was like, 'I mean, that's my role. I believe I got that.'"

But that excitement would turn to concern when she read what was initially written for Dee for a second audition via phone. "It was only later, after they asked me to do it on the phone I didn't have to talk to their faces. I just told my agent when they were like, 'Oh, that wouldn't be your character. Here are five scripts that are written, and here's the Dee character.' And it wasn't good. So I passed." Thankfully, McElhenney was able to make the case to Olson that they wanted the Dee they met during her audition and not what was previously written. "Then Rob called me and was like, 'That's not what we meant. We do want you to be you.'"

Olson credits there not being a Dee script available during her initial audition as the reason she gave the role a chance – otherwise, she "probably would've passed" on the audition – and we just can't imagine anyone else as Dee Reynolds so we're going to stop freaking out about a "What If…?" that never happened. "If I had gotten an audition and they had literally just pulled a Dee scene out of the scripts that they had already written, I probably would've passed on the audition," Olson explained. "I was coming off of a show that was shot in England where I had a bad experience, and I said, 'Okay, for the rest of my life, I will never take a job for money or just because I want to be on TV.' I would've missed out on the whole thing if I got an actual Dee script."

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