Abbott Elementary Season 4 is set to debut amid the 2024 TV schedule, and I’m pumped! What really has me excited is the previously teased crossover, which has been confirmed to feature the cast of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Fans likely have a lot of questions regarding what will go down when the characters of the respective comedies cross paths. The EPs are (unsurprisingly) remaining cagey when it comes to specific story details. However, the Abbott bosses did just share some information that eased one concern I had about the TV event.
This certainly won’t mark the first time that two popular shows have cross-pollinated, as there are plenty of instances of that across the history of the boob tube. However, I’d argue that the majority of the most excellent TV crossovers encompass entire episodes and aren’t just relegated to cameos or brief moments in a cold open or end tag. That’s what I’ve been worried about when it comes to “It’s Always Sunny At Abbott Elementary.” (OK, that’s not the official name, but that’s what I’m calling it.
Fans should breathe a sigh of relief after what Abbott EPs Patrick Schumacker and Justin Halpern had to say to Variety. Both confirmed that all members of “The Gang” from Sunny are going to factor into the episode (which will be Season 4’s ninth installment) in a major way. Schumacker emphasized that with a relatively direct statement. He even teased that one fan-favorite IASIP character is going to play a particularly large role in the story:
We got the whole gang, the ‘A’ story, ‘B’ story, ‘C,’ ‘D,’ it’s all them. … Charlie Day’s character has a pretty significant storyline in our episode. It was kind of a joke at first, that the two shows should cross over. On paper, it feels like they’d be a real tonal mishmash. But then Rob and Charlie came to our writers room and we hashed out some real broad stroke ideas. From there, we emailed back and forth beat sheets and then an outline. They were super game for everything. All those concerns that we had about the tones of the shows butting against each other were alleviated the second we started filming with Charlie.
Now, I’m very intrigued as to how Charlie Day’s Charlie Kelly impacts this likely comedic tale. Kelly is notably illiterate, which is a character quirk that could be utilized to great effect on a school-centric sitcom. Despite my questions on that front, I’m just pleased that Day, Rob McElhenney, Kaitlin Olson, Glenn Howerton and Danny DeVito are all in the mix. It also sounds like the writers of both shows have worked closely to maintain creative continuity. Patrick Schumacher even promised that those who unfamiliar with Sunny’s vibe, won’t feel confused:
It just kind of works in a vacuum. They just feel like other guest stars on the show. Obviously, it’s going to have a much deeper meaning for ‘Sunny’ fans.
Even before Rob McElhenney confirmed this mashup on social media, a number of fans predicted that It’s Always Sunny was part of the crossover. Now, a number of devotees have taken to social media to share all the “Sunny” comments. I’m still not quite sure what we can expect from this meeting of comedic TV titans. However, I’m certainly now comforted by the fact that the characters of both programs will be able to share the screen quite a bit.
Abbott Elementary returns to ABC tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET, while production on Season 17 of FX’s It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is set to kick off soon. Episodes of both shows can also be streamed with a Hulu subscription.