Danny DeVito’s Frank Reynolds became a major part of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia from season 2 onwards, but here’s who was originally in line for the part. It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia has been running since 2005, and is a pitch-black sitcom following the lives of the Paddy’s Pub gang. Season 1 introduced Dennis, his twin sister Dee and their friends Mac and Charlie, who were all in their own ways horrible, selfish and amoral losers. While the show quickly found a following, it was the introduction of Danny DeVito during It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia’s second season that really saw it grow in popularity.
Danny DeVito’s It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia character Frank Reynolds is such a major part of the ensemble it’s hard to imagine the show without him now. FX was actually on the verge of canceling It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia after season 1 since the ratings were fairly lukewarm. The network liked the sitcom, however, and it was so low-budget they thought it was worth risking a second season to see if it could still catch on.
Surprisingly, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia’s cast and showrunners Glenn Howerton, Charlie Day and Rob McElhenney were initially against the idea of adding a major star. Given that the ultimatum was to either add some star power or get canceled, they ultimately approached Danny DeVito, and the rest is TV history. While developing It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia season 2, they had already been thinking about adding Dennis and Dee’s “father,” but they had Goodfellas‘ star Ray Liotta in mind.
According to episode 7 of The Always Sunny Podcast, Howerton states that “We got very serious about Ray Liotta” while developing the character. Liotta is best known for playing more intense characters, though he’s appeared in several comedies over the years like Heartbreakers or Adam Sandler’s Hubie Halloween. Based on his previous work, it’s likely he would have had a more straightfaced take on It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia’s Frank than Danny DeVito did.
DeVito has also stayed with It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia since the second season, but Liotta may not have wanted to make such a big commitment. Still, it’s kind of fascinating to imagine what a Ray Liotta Frank Reynolds may have been like, and if It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia would have grown into the beloved show it eventually became. While Ray Liotta largely eschewed TV work when It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia – which is on season 15 – began, in the years since he’s had roles on many series like cop drama Shades Of Blue.
