Rob McElhenney explains his decision to legally shorten his name to Rob Mac, citing years of mispronunciations and a desire for simplicity.
Rob McElhenney, the Emmy-winning co-creator and star of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, recently took to social media to address his decision to legally shorten his name to “Rob Mac.”
In a one-minute video posted on X, he candidly acknowledged that the move may come across as “kinda douchey,” but explained that the change was driven by sheer practicality: he estimates that he has wasted “days of my life” correcting people on how to pronounce and spell “McElhenney.”
McElhenney traced the origin of his family name back to a period when ancestral surnames were often anglicized or altered by government officials, noting that the current spelling was imposed on his forebear by an unnamed bureaucrat.
“Not only have many generations changed the spelling,” he remarked, “but the current one was just given to my ancestor by a government official who decided that this was now the spelling.”
I said what I said. pic.twitter.com/lvwKgTBBrx
— Rob Mac (@RMcElhenney) July 1, 2025
Given that context, shortening the name to “Mac” feels no less connected to his lineage than the long form ever did—and, in practice, most people already refer to him as “Rob Mac.”
While the decision is officially a legal name change, McElhenney emphasized that for him it functions primarily as a stage name, a way to streamline professional credits and everyday interactions.
He joked that continuing to insist on the fuller version would be akin to “wasting your time” on a trivial matter, particularly in light of more pressing issues in the world.
His family, he assured fans, remains supportive regardless of the number of syllables he uses.
McElhenney closed his message with a lighthearted invitation: “Honestly, call me whatever you want.”
The new moniker will make its debut in the credits of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia when Season 17 premieres on FXX on July 9.
That episode, titled “The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary,” marks the conclusion of the show’s two-part crossover event with ABC’s Abbott Elementary.
Whether billed as McElhenney or Mac, audiences can look forward to his trademark blend of sharp humor and irreverence when the season returns.
