Dave Bautista Was Turned Down for Key Role on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Before Guardians of the Galaxy transformed Dave Bautista from a talented WWE star to a household name, the actor reportedly missed out on a role in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. According to the Always Sunny Podcast, a rewatch podcast hosted by members of the series’ cast, Bautista nearly got cast in the recurring role of Luther McDonald, Mac’s dad. The role ultimately went to Gregory Scott Cummins. According to the podcast, Bautista nearly landed the role, but ultimately failed to get cast because the age difference between himself and Rob McElhenney, who plays Mac, is only nine years.

That obstacle proved to be a dealbreaker, but only after a lot of  hemming and hawing on the part of producers, apparently. Bautista really impressed people in his audition, and it wasn’t until they found someone more age appropriate, who also seemed right for the part, that Bautista was presumably off the table.

Mac’s dad is a convicted felon covered with tattoos and slicked-back hair, which is a look that certainly is not far removed from what people associate with Bautista. He first appeared in season two, way back in 2006.

Apparently, not everyone knew that Bautista tried out for the part, as co-star Glenn Howerton, upon learning the trivia from McElhenney, shot back with “Get out of here!” It didn’t take long for him, too, to realize that the age difference would have been a complicating factor in the casting.

Ironically, while he is 12 years older than Bautista, even Cummins had to be aged up a bit in order to look convincingly like both Mac’s dad and a grizzled convict when he came to the show.

In It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, the longest-running live-action sitcom on TV, five friends with big egos and small brains are the proprietors of an Irish pub in Philadelphia. The gang, five raging alcoholic, narcissists run a failing dive bar in South Philly. The gang make up some scheme for sex, money, fame or for any other terrible reason you could think of.