Why are Kaitlin Olson and Rob McElhenney’s kids not happy about his name change? Actress explains

Kaitlin Olson opened up about her family's reaction to spouse Rob McElhenney’s name change, saying their kids didn’t take the news well. Rob McElhenney may have had good reasons for wanting to legally become Rob Mac, but it didn't exactly win him any points with his children, Axel and Leo.

The It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia actor spoke to Variety about the potential name change, citing the ongoing difficulty people have pronouncing his last name. Still, Kaitlin Olson, his wife and fellow Sunny star, admitted the announcement stirred up some resistance at home. She explained,

“The kids are really not happy about it, because they have that last name, and so do I, legally!”

Kaitlin Olson called out Rob McElhenney for showing their kids’ faces in public

Kaitlin Olson and Rob McElhenney may be one of TV’s most enduring power couples, but that doesn’t mean they always see eye to eye, especially when it comes to their kids.

In a joint interview with Variety, Kaitlin Olson opened up about a point of contention that still stings: Rob’s decision to show their children's faces publicly, something the two had previously agreed not to do.

“We’d talked about not showing their faces, I remember going through puberty — no kid should be seen publicly before they’re ready to. Everyone’s got their insecurities, and it’s not their fault that we chose this path and that we're famous. Rob went rogue and put them in a f***ing documentary! I’m still unhappy about that,” Olson said.

Rob acknowledged the disagreement, though his take was more relaxed.

“The kids love it, I have a different perspective. Millions of people across the world say, ‘We love to watch them!’” he explained.

But Kaitlin Olson didn’t hold back in her reply:

“I don’t care about them — I care about my kids! We’re still fighting about it.”

Despite the behind-the-scenes tension, the couple’s professional lives continue to thrive. Their Sunny co-star and executive producer Charlie Day praised the duo’s momentum.

“It would be very impressive if just one of them was going on a run, but the fact is that both of them are stringing together a series of real successes, they’re on a tear,” Day noted.

Kaitlin Olson has been making waves with High Potential, ABC’s breakout procedural hit. The show, adapted from the French/Belgian series HPI by Drew Goddard, features Kaitlin Olson as a whip-smart single mom with a knack for cracking tough cases, injecting fresh energy into a broadcast landscape long overshadowed by streaming.

“Kaitlin is the show, she pours herself into every frame, she elevates every person who steps on set. I think the show works because we somehow capture how inspiring it feels to be around her,” Goddard said.

Rob McElhenney officially changes name to Rob Mac to end years of mispronunciations

Rob says he finally had enough of the constant name butchering. As confirmed by his rep to Entertainment Weekly on June 27, the actor officially filed paperwork to change his name to “Rob Mac.” The decision came after years of dealing with mispronunciations and a desire to make things simpler, as his work reaches a broader audience.

In the interview with Variety last month, Rob explained,

“As our business and our storytelling is expanding into other regions of the world and other languages in which my name is even harder to pronounce, I’m just going by Rob Mac.”

He had already begun using the shorter version, even appearing as Rob Mac in official FX credits for It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, the long-running sitcom he co-created and stars in as Mac.

The move drew mixed reactions online, prompting Rob to post a video on X where he gave a minute-long explanation.

“Yes, I’m shortening my name to Rob Mac, mostly a stage name, but I digress. Is it kinda douchey? Sure. But the amount of time that I have wasted trying to get people to either spell or say my name correctly, is literally days of my life. Trust me, I added it up,” he said.

He acknowledged the frustration fans may have felt over the years trying to pronounce his surname, and offered a touch of self-aware humor:

“More importantly, it means thousands of you have had minutes of your life stolen by me, because of my last name, including this one.”

Rob added that his decision ultimately reflects a reality that has long existed.

“Most people already call me Rob Mac anyway, my family knows me and loves me regardless of how many syllables I have, and that’s the only thing that I really care about,” he said.