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Times are great for Abbott Elementary and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia fans with the crossover episode, The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary, showing the beloved elementary teachers in a light that has never been seen before.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Season 17 premiered with its first two episodes on July 9, 2025, and showed Janine Teagues cuss, an occurrence that never happened before.
Since Abbott Elementary has to maintain the standard language practices as set by ABC, it is only natural that characters do not get to express their feelings in a raw way, using cuss words. However, the crossover episode provided a window for that, and the results were quite hilarious and authentic.
Glenn Howerton, one of the executive producers of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, mentioned how the cast of Abbott Elementary readily enjoyed this opportunity as they were,
“Getting a chance to break free of the confines of a network show.”
He further added,
“Regardless of how smart and funny that show is, you know that they’re restricted from what they’re able to get away with. Just as we were excited to enter into their world and see how these characters would fit, I think they were just as excited to jump into our world.”
The crossover episode maintains the mockumentary structure that Abbott Elementary follows, and the two episodes were shot back to back.
Abbott Elementary cast cusses for the first time with the crossover with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
In the crossover episode, Janine initially liked Sweet Dee as they were both Penn alums and had found a common ground there. However, when Janine realized that Dee was hitting on Gregory, she did not take that very well.
In Dee's absence, Janine tells the camera and Gregory,
“I mean, I liked Dee at first, but then things got awkward when she tried to steal you. Safe to say I liked her less after that. But it wasn’t until I saw the extra footage that I was able to realize just how much of a … sh… I need to say a bad word. How much of a total fucking cunt she was.”
Her choice of words shocks Gregory, who tells her that he thought she would only call him a bitch. The reaction feels genuine, and the joke lands because Janine clearly says how she feels sometimes, as adults cussing does bring out one's state of mind. Talking about the same, Charlie Day, another executive producer of the show who also plays the role of Charlie Kelly, said to Variety,
“I think 99.9% of adult human beings probably cuss or swear from time to time. The fact that their cast can’t do it, due to the restrictions of ABC, it’s nice to see them behave in a way that you’re sure that they do, but you know, by the rules of television that they cannot.”
Seeing the cast of Abbott Elementary in this never-before-seen light was indeed great and made the crossover quite an epic one, as can be expected from something where the It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia gang is involved.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Abbott Elementary can be streamed on Hulu.
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