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38 free Hard It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
This hard It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia trivia quiz is for people who have seen every season more than once. It asks who was originally cast as Sweet Dee, what the pilot was really shot for, which building plays Paddy's Pub, who wrote the theme song, what Mac's full name is, who Dennis and Dee's biological father turned out to be, how much debt Dennis took on in his divorce, why the Ireland episodes were shot in California, and which episodes are missing from Hulu. Cricket, the McPoyles, the Waitress, Artemis, Uncle Jack, the Lawyer, the Ponderosas and Da Maniac all appear. It is written for superfans, Paddy's Pub quiz nights and anyone who found the main It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia trivia page too easy. Expect almost everything at hard or expert level. Every answer has been checked against the Wikipedia articles on the series, its characters, its episodes and its cast, and each question shows its source once you have answered.
30 of 38 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01On what date did It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia premiere on FX?
August 4, 2005
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia premiered on FX on August 4, 2005, with the episode The Gang Gets Racist; Danny DeVito joined the cast in season two.
Q 02Which sitcom did Sunny surpass in December 2021 as the longest-running American live-action sitcom by seasons?
The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
Season 15 in December 2021 gave Sunny 15 seasons, one more than The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, which ran 14 seasons from 1952 to 1966.
Q 03Before Kaitlin Olson was cast, who was going to play Sweet Dee?
Jordan Reid, McElhenney's girlfriend
Jordan Reid, McElhenney's girlfriend at the time, played Dee in the original pilot; after the couple broke up the part was recast with Kaitlin Olson, who later married McElhenney.
Q 04What was the working title of the original home-movie pilot?
It's Always Sunny on TV
The home-movie pilot was titled It's Always Sunny on TV, after the a-ha song The Sun Always Shines on T.V.; the gang were then written as struggling actors rather than bar owners.
Q 05What was the original concept for the theme song before the actor premise was dropped?
A cha-cha version of Hooray for Hollywood
Under the original premise of the gang as struggling actors, the planned theme was a cha-cha version of Hooray for Hollywood; when that premise was dropped the show took a library cue instead.
Q 06Who composed Temptation Sensation, the show's theme song?
Heinz Kiessling
Heinz Kiessling, a German library-music composer, wrote Temptation Sensation; his cues On Your Bike and Blue Blood also run under the show's scene transitions.
Q 07The exterior of Paddy's Pub is shot at which real location?
The Starkman Building, Los Angeles
Paddy's Pub's street exterior is The Starkman Building, Los Angeles, at 544 Mateo Street downtown; the bar interior is a soundstage set.
Q 08Which actor played Shelley Kelly, Charlie's father, in season 15?
Colm Meaney
Colm Meaney played Shelley Kelly, who in season 15 turns out to be Charlie's real father; the Gang spends the season finale carrying his corpse.
Q 09How many episodes were pulled from Hulu in 2020 over blackface and racial caricatures?
Five
Five episodes were pulled from Hulu in June 2020 over blackface scenes, among them The Gang Recycles Their Trash, Dee Day and The Gang Makes Lethal Weapon 6.
Q 10In which episode is Mac's full name revealed to be Ronald McDonald?
The High School Reunion
The High School Reunion, a two-parter from late 2011, shows Mac's real name, Ronald McDonald, on his reunion name tag.
Q 11Who is Dennis and Dee's biological father?
Bruce Mathis
Barbara tricked Frank into raising the twins because she thought he was richer; Stephen Collins played the philanthropist Mathis.
Q 12What was Rickety Cricket's job before the Gang ruined his life?
Catholic priest
Matthew Mara was a Catholic priest when the Gang met him again in The Gang Exploits a Miracle; he left the priesthood for Dee and his life fell apart.
Q 13Cricket has his legs broken by whom?
The Philadelphia Mafia
The Philadelphia Mafia broke Cricket's legs in the two-part The Gang Gets Whacked, after the Gang set him up to take the fall for their drug dealing.
Q 21Ingrid Nelson, nicknamed Fatty Magoo, grew up to be a successful what?
Fashion designer
Ingrid Nelson grew up to be a successful fashion designer with her own boutique; Judy Greer plays her, and Dennis pitches her a dress by modelling it himself.
Q 22Why was Dee known as the Aluminum Monster in high school?
She wore a back brace for scoliosis
Dee was called the Aluminum Monster because she wore a back brace for scoliosis through high school, and classmates mocked the metal frame.
Q 23Gail the Snail is related to Dennis and Dee how?
Cousin, daughter of Barbara's sister Donna
Q 14Which two actors play the McPoyle brothers Liam and Ryan?
Jimmi Simpson and Nate Mooney
Jimmi Simpson and Nate Mooney play Liam and Ryan McPoyle, the milk-drinking brothers introduced in season one's Charlie Got Molested.
Q 15Liam McPoyle's season 8 engagement to Dennis's ex-wife is called off after what?
Her ex-husband sleeps with her
In The Maureen Ponderosa Wedding Massacre the engagement collapses because her ex-husband sleeps with her: Dennis beds Maureen, leaving himself paying alimony after all.
Q 16Uncle Jack Kelly, Charlie's lawyer uncle, has a bizarre fixation on the size of what?
His hands
Uncle Jack is obsessed with his hands, insisting they are big while hiding how small they are; Andrew Friedman first played him in season one's Charlie Got Molested.
Q 17In which episode is the Lawyer, played by Brian Unger, first seen?
Dennis and Dee's Mom Is Dead
The Lawyer debuts in Dennis and Dee's Mom Is Dead, the season three episode in which he reads Barbara Reynolds' will as its executor.
Q 18Which singer are Dee and Artemis devoted superfans of?
Josh Groban
Dee and Artemis are devoted fans of Josh Groban, the pop-classical singer whose followers call themselves Grobanites.
Q 19Which pro wrestler played Da Maniac, the deranged homeless wrestler?
Roddy Piper
Roddy Piper, the WWF's Rowdy Roddy Piper, played Da Maniac in The Gang Wrestles for the Troops, the unhinged wrestler the Gang recruits for their charity show.
Q 20Duncan and Z, Frank's bizarre friends, were met where?
Under a bridge
Frank says he met Duncan and Z under a bridge; Z is played by Chad L. Coleman, who was Cutty on The Wire.
Gail the Snail is their cousin, daughter of Barbara's sister Donna; Mary Lynn Rajskub plays her, and the Gang throws salt to make her leave.
Q 24Ben the Soldier is first introduced as what?
Dee's online chat buddy
Ben the Soldier, played by Travis Schuldt, first appears as Dee's online chat buddy in The Gang Wrestles for the Troops, where she expects a hunk and meets a short man.
Q 25In Dee Gives Birth, who turns out to be the father of Dee's baby?
Carmen
Carmen fathered the baby with sperm she banked before transitioning; Dee carried it as a surrogate for Carmen and her husband Nick.
Q 26In Sweet Dee Gets Audited, why does Dennis blow chili powder into Dee's eyes?
She cannot cry on cue at a fake funeral
Dennis blows chili powder into Dee's eyes because she cannot cry on cue at a fake funeral staged for her invented baby in front of the IRS agent.
Q 27Charlie is illiterate, but the show says he can read which language?
Irish
In season 15 Charlie finds he can read and write Irish fluently, though he is barely literate in English, and reads his father Shelley Kelly's letters without trouble.
Q 28In The Nightman Cometh, which two roles do Frank and Dee get?
Troll and princess
Frank and Dee get the Troll and Princess parts in Charlie's rock opera, while Dennis takes the Dayman and Mac the Nightman, adding karate to the part.
Q 29Who directed The Nightman Cometh?
Matt Shakman
Matt Shakman, who directed dozens of Sunny episodes before WandaVision, directed The Nightman Cometh, the season four finale that aired on 20 November 2008.
Q 30In The Nightman Cometh, Charlie gives the Waitress a ticket and promises what if she attends?
He will never bother her again
Charlie promises the Waitress he will never bother her again if she comes; the show turns out to be a disguised marriage proposal, which she refuses on the spot.