Alexandra Daddario Admits She Badly Wanted Her It's Always Sunny Cameo, And Steve Martin And A Banjo Were Involved

Alexandra Daddario has had a slew of notable TV roles. She became a breakout name after her role in True Detective and went on to crush in The White Lotus (including a now-infamous bikini scene). Yet, she recently admitted one of her favorite TV roles was her guest stint in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. She's actually obsessed with the show and went way out of her way to make a last minute audition for it. 

Daddario’s always a person with quirky stories, and she has one about auditioning for the FX series. Speaking during an episode of YouTube’s TMG Series, the actress, her pal Morgan Nalley and hosts Brooke and Conner were speaking about their varying connections to Philadelphia when her cameo in the FX series came up.

We all have connections to Philly. My mom’s from Philly. And [it’s the city of] It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Only because it was my favorite show. Yes [I’m in an episode], only because it’s my favorite show. It’s where I am, oh my god, I was dating Charlie and then he dumped me. We’re like the rich kids. And he rejects me mercilessly. Because he loves the waitress.

Of course, while some It’s Always Sunny stints are forgettable, this one was pretty memorable. When the opportunity to play a rich girl who dates Charlie came her way, though, the actress said it was last minute and she wasn’t even in LA when she got the call to audition. She’d gone, by herself, to see Steve Martin, as one does. 

But yeah I loved that show so much that, I think I was in Las Vegas by myself. I drove to Vegas to see Steve Martin play the banjo by myself at the time, which is a thing I do. And I got the call for the audition and so right after the Steve Martin concert I drove through the night back to LA to get to my 10 a.m. audition the next day. I got the job!

Los Angeles is only a few hours away from Las Vegas in good traffic, but I'd imagine if you went to a late show in Sin City that it would be a long night of driving. Throw in the stress of an early audition on top of that, and I could see how it might be a tough decision to head back to Tinseltown. Though in this case the actress seems stoked she got to catch Steve Martin and his banjo and make it back in time to try out for a role she badly wanted. 

After talking about the long drive she endured in order to make her call time, the actress also spoke out about cameoing on New Girl a couple of years later, and while she’s happy for the work, she did take a small dig at the Zooey Deschanel starrer, noting “It wasn’t my It’s Always Sunny.” 

I get it though. New Girl’s spawned a lot of notable lines and has a solid fanbase , but those who are into It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are typically pretty ardent. While the actress might not appear on the show again, the good news is there are new episodes coming up. Season 16 of It’s Always Sunny premieres next month and if you’d like to check out what else is coming to the 2023 TV schedule, we have you covered. To note, Steve Martin playing the banjo is sadly not on the list of upcoming TV projects, though we will be getting more Only Murders coming up. Personally, now I feel that’s the perfect next show for Daddario to cameo in. 

Jessica Rawden
Managing Editor

Jessica Rawden is Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. She’s been kicking out news stories since 2007 and joined the full-time staff in 2014. She oversees news content, hiring and training for the site, and her areas of expertise include theme parks, rom-coms, Hallmark (particularly Christmas movie season), reality TV, celebrity interviews and primetime. She loves a good animated movie. Jessica has a Masters in Library Science degree from Indiana University, and used to be found behind a reference desk most definitely not shushing people. She now uses those skills in researching and tracking down information in very different ways.