Off the top of your head, what is the longest-running live-action sitcom of all time? Maybe you'd think of a modern hit like The Big Bang Theory. Perhaps a critical and audience favorite like The Office. Or, going farther back, it could be one that dominated the '90s, like Seinfeld and Friends. Does one of these hold that record?
Nope. The longest-running TV comedy is It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, a show detailing the exploits of the depraved members of "The Gang" in the titular Pennsylvania city. The series has aired continuously since its 2005 debut, with the most recent landmark fifteenth season airing in 2021.
The series also shows no signs of slowing down, with four additional seasons ordered in December 2020. So realistically, how long can Always Sunny stay on the air? The show remains popular with fans, and the cast and crew still enjoy producing it after all these years. The answer to that question could be... indefinitely. In today's media landscape, shows are lucky if they receive three or four seasons, let alone fifteen. Now, let's look at where Always Sunny gets its staying power and why that power could keep the show going forever.
The Cast and Characters Remain Phenomenal
Many beloved long-running comedies derive their success from a cast of relatable and lovable characters that we love to watch succeed. That is not the case for Sunny. Charlie, Dennis, Mac, Dee, and Frank are some of the most morally bankrupt characters ever seen in a comedy (and also the funniest). Despite being self-proclaimed lifelong friends, they have absolutely no sense of unity. They will insult and throw each other under the proverbial bus if it benefits them in the slightest. Their destructive tendencies are not just limited to the Paddy's Pub gang. Need proof? Look at the systematic transformation of Rickety Cricket from Catholic priest to drug-addicted homeless assault victim, all at the hands of the Gang.
In a way, the sheer awfulness of the Gang is precisely what makes them work. While other comedies' characters often have faults, the shows still present them as good people. Take Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory, for example. Would anyone realistically be friends with someone like that? He is arrogant, rude, and self-centered, but the series still maintains he is a good person. The rest of the group tolerates him because "Oh well, that's just how Sheldon is." On the flip side, everyone at Sunny is terrible and makes no attempt to hide their disdain for each other. But bound together as the owners of Paddy's Pub, they must maintain some level of "friendship." This is likely because they're too apathetic to branch out from the Gang, and "normal people" would never want them as friends. They're together because they have no other options.
Viewers can look at the Gang and say, "I'm glad my friend group isn't as toxic as these people." Instead of rooting for the Gang, we can take solace in the fact that there will always be people worse than us out there. In a sitcom world where every character is a good person, it's nice to have some people out there to root against, where it's ok to laugh at their misfortune.
The Light Filming Schedule
As mentioned, Sunny reached its milestone fifteenth season in 2021. That solidified its top spot in the record books. So what was the previous record holder, you might ask? Well, of course, it was the iconic and enduring hit The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, which aired fourteen seasons from 1952 to 1966. Everyone has heard of that, right?
Despite how long Sunny has been on the air, it's nowhere near the top of the charts for total episode count. As of season fifteen's end, just 162 episodes have aired. This is because the show typically only produces around ten episodes a year. Recently, the gaps between seasons have also been getting longer. Season fifteen aired a full two years after season fourteen finished, and there is no timeline for when the sixteenth season might premiere.
This stretched timeline enables the cast to work on other television projects. Kaitlin Olson had The Mick on Fox, Glenn Howerton did NBC and Peacock's AP Bio, and Rob McElhenney creates and stars in Apple TV+'s Mythic Quest. While these years-long hiatuses between ten-episode seasons may cause frustration among fans, it's actually for the best in the long run. Broadcast network comedies produce roughly 18–22 episodes every year, which can lead to fatigue and a dip in quality much faster than cable. By not working on the same show every day for years on end, Sunny avoids that dip in quality that strikes many long-running sitcoms. The only show that has Sunny beat in this regard is likely Curb Your Enthusiasm, which regularly takes multiple-year hiatuses and has only aired 11 ten-episode seasons in 23 years on the air.
Simply put, producing fewer episodes gives the cast and crew more time to make each episode the best it can be. With this arrangement of only making ten episodes in two years, Sunny could continue indefinitely. Cast members don't have a full-time commitment to the show and can move on to other things in the off-years. As long as the quality stays high, viewer interest likely will too, and the cast and crew can continue their "part-time job" production style long into the future.