FX Boss John Landgraf Says Kaitlin Olson Is the Modern-Day Lucille Ball
Sweet Deeee, you’ve got some ‘splaining to dooo!!!
2025 is shaping up to be the year when Kaitlin Olson finally conquers the television industry after two straight decades of putting out comedic excellence on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Between her Emmy-worthy performance on the critically beloved comedy series Hacks, the ratings dominance of her crime drama vehicle High Potential and the imminent, long-awaited return of the record-breaking sitcom that first made her a star, Olson is all over the small screen, and, in 70 years, the next-next-next generation’s greatest TV comedienne will probably consider her the gold standard.
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Long before Olson was a household name, FX Chairman and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia greenlighter John Landgraf knew that Olson was bound to become the biggest star on TV as soon as she entered the audition room. In today’s Variety cover story, Landgraf commented of Olson’s Always Sunny audition, “Kaitlin was just great, it was like watching Lucille Ball walk through the door.”
During the interview, Olson’s husband and fellow Always Sunny star Rob McElhenney bristled at the comedy power couple comparisons that some fans have made about the creative and life partners, perhaps on the basis of the behind-the-scenes drama that plagued the OG husband-and-wife sitcom stars. “I would never compare ourselves to Lucy and Desi!” McElhenney exclaimed. “However, John (Landgraf) has compared you to Lucille Ball.”
Landgraf, who was the president of FX when McElhenney first pitched Always Sunny and who gave the show its first shoestring budget, has no qualms about levying superlative praise on the show’s breakout star. Landgraf told Variety of Olson, “You can put her in any situation, and there’s just something about the way she performs comedy physically.”
Clearly, the TV-watching public agree with the kingmaker’s assessment of the comedy queen. In a recent trending Twitter topic, comedy fans argued that Olson’s only equal in the field of physical humor isn’t even another sitcom actor: only Bugs Bunny can rival the incredible bits Olson pulls off. And, while Olson may not be the title character on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia as Lucille Ball was on I Love Lucy, no other comedic actor currently on TV has as many iconic moments that belong on novelty T-shirts and fridge magnets. We're still waiting on the official It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia merch shop to immortalize the time when Olson almost literally broke her back to nail the scene where she slams her head into the side of a car.
And, with respect to the late legend, Lucille Ball ain’t got shit on Olson’s conveyor belt scene.
