Rob McElhenney is now officially Rob Mac. The legal name change happened on June 26 in Los Angeles. McElhenney, who co-owns Wrexham football club and has starred on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia for 15 seasons, said the name change is to help make things easier.
In a video posted on social media, he explained that "McElhenney" has posed problems for people to pronounce or spell; he said it has wasted time when people can't say the name or wrote the name down wrong, which was problematic for paperwork. He feels the name "Rob Mac" is already what many people call him.
The legal name change should hopefully bring clarity and simplicity in his life—especially as his work and businesses continue to be international.
McElhenney said "McElhenney" is not even the original family name; a government clerk changed it many years ago, which he felt made the new name even more authentic.
He expects to see "Rob Mac" appear in credits in upcoming projects including the next season of It’s Always Sunny and subsequent episodes of Welcome to Wrexham.
Rob McElhenney is defending the decision to change his name to "Rob Mac," while also admitting that it's "kinda douchey":
— Variety (@Variety) July 2, 2025
“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… pic.twitter.com/Lx8wl28Ye9
Family Response and What It Means for His Future Projects
While Rob Mac is embracing his new name, his family isn’t completely on board. His wife, actress Kaitlin Olson, recently indicated that their two sons were “really not happy” with the change as both of them still have McElhenney as their last name and were surprised by their father's name change.
However, the actor is committed to the name change especially as he continues to branch out in his career beyond television.
With his business interests and public presence in sports, entertainment, and entrepreneurship being recognized internationally, a shorter name is likely to be beneficial for the networking, branding, and public-facing name recognition.
Fans can look for the new name in media starting with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia Season 17, which launches on July 9.
The name change will also extend to his growing business brand, More Better Industries, and other public-facing projects.
While the name change yielded a range of reactions online, many faithful viewers of Sunny will already be accustomed to calling him “Mac”, which makes the transition feel more familiar.
