It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 17: release date of next series of IASIP and how to watch S16

The latest season of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (IASIP), which aired in the US three months ago, is finally coming to the UK. 

The cult comedy series, starring Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Rob McElhenney. Kaitlin Olson, and Danny DeVito, has been running for 16 years, and in 2021 became the longest-running American sitcom of all time. 

The show is known for its dark humour and has made stars of its cast - McElhenney now features alongside Ryan Reynolds in football documentary Welcome to Wrexham, about the Welsh team he bought using his sitcom wealth.

Season 16 of IASIP is about to land in the UK, but even better news for the show’s fans is that the show is set to return for at least two more seasons with the main cast still attached.

Where can you watch It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 16?

Season 16 of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia premiered in the US in June and will finally be available to watch in the UK from Friday 15 September.

All eight episodes of the latest season will be available to stream on Netflix in the UK from Friday and many of the show’s fans will likely binge watch their way through the new episodes within hours of its release.

This means that it won’t be long until fans are baying for new episodes to be released.  

When is the release date of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 17?

The wait for season 16 was around 18 months for US viewers, as season 15 aired in America in December 2021, and season 16 came in June of this year.

Excluding the gap between the first two seasons of the show, there has always been a wait of between one and two years between seasons. Season 17 could feasibly arrive as early as June 2024 in the US, with the show then coming to the UK, around three months later. Fans in the UK could therefore expect a release date of mid September 2024 at the earliest.

However, the ongoing Hollywood actors’ and writers’ strikes, which the cast of IASIP are involved in, is likely to cause delays in the production schedule. The WGA strike began in May and the SAG-AFTRA strike began in July and neither have yet been resolved.

A delay of several months at least can be expected, but if the strikes into 2024, a much longer delay to the season 17 release date is likely. 

Seasons eight to 14 of IASIP had 10 episodes each, but the last two seasons of the show have been shorter, with just eight episodes each. Season 17 is therefore expected to follow suit with an eight episode series, but this is yet to be confirmed.

Who will be in the cast of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia season 17?

The main cast of IASIP will return in season 17, they are:

• Charlie Day as Charlie Kelly
• Glenn Howerton as Dennis Reynolds
• Rob McElhenney as Mac
• Kaitlin Olson as Dee Reynolds
• Danny DeVito as Frank Reynolds

Other recurring cast members expected to return are:

• Mary Elizabeth Ellis as The Waitress
• David Hornsby as Cricket 
• Artemis Pebdani as Artemis 
• Lynne Marie Stewart as Charlie's Mom
• Sandy Martin as Mrs. Mac

How many more seasons of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia will there be?

The last update on the number of seasons confirmed for the sitcom came in December 2020, when it was renewed for four new seasons, guaranteeing the show to continue to run until at least season 18.

Season 18 is not expected to arrive for at least two years, but the stars of the show, three of whom launched The Always Sunny Podcast, seem keen to keep the show going for as long as possible.

If the show maintains a strong audience, as it has done to date, it’s likely that the sitcom will be renewed for a 19th (and possibly 20th) season ahead of the season 18 release.