A fan theory speculates that Charlie could be a demigod in It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and there's a surprising amount of evidence to support it. From the show's very beginning, Charlie Kelly (Charlie Day) has been one of its central characters alongside friends Mac, Dennis, and Dee, later becoming increasingly close with Frank, Dennis and Dee's father. Charlie is often dismissed by the group due to his perceived stupidity, which often results in him finding himself in unusual situations.
Charlie's character is defined by a number of unique traits. Though Charlie is often characterized as alcoholic, illiterate (believed to be due to undiagnosed dyslexia), and particularly gullible, one of his biggest hang-ups related to his father, who was absent during his childhood and whose identity remains unknown despite the show having teased it numerous times. It's Always Sunny's Charlie is obsessed with finding his father, and that search eventually brought him to Ireland, where he was able to narrow his search down considerably.
However, one fan theory posted to Reddit believes that Charlie's father may be a Celtic god, making him a demigod in the manner of the Percy Jackson franchise. Though it may seem implausible, there's actually a surprising amount of evidence to support the theory in It's Always Sunny, as many aspects of Charlie's character could be explained by the demigod theory. Even where the show doesn't entirely prove the theory, there's very little to actively disprove it, making it surprisingly compelling upon inspection of the evidence supporting it.
Charlie's Dyslexia And Grasp Of Gaelic Fits With Percy Jackson's Demigods
One of the most persistent jokes about It's Always Sunny's Charlie is that he's dyslexic. Charlie's inability to read and write has been used for countless jokes over the show's run so far, but the theory believes that it's also a clear sign that he may be a demigod. While Charlie's difficulty with written English is well-established, in It's Always Sunny season 15, episode 6, "The Gang's Still in Ireland", Charlie is revealed to be fluent in spoken and written Gaelic.
Charlie's ability to understand Gaelic was something he claimed to have learned from his pen-pal, Shelley Kelly, although if he was truly dyslexic he should have found this incredibly difficult. The theory points out the distinct similarity between Charlie and Percy Jackson, who has difficulty reading and writing English but is able to communicate in Ancient Greek due to his Greek god parentage. If Charlie's father in It's Always Sunny is indeed a Celtic god, his apparent illiteracy and ability to read and write Gaelic would serve as proof that Charlie is a demigod just like Percy Jackson.
Charlie Is A Musical Savant – How It Could Be Linked To A Celtic God
From that key piece of evidence, the theory goes on to speculate about other aspects of Charlie's character and how they fit with Charlie's potential demigod status. Much like Charlie's illiteracy, his musical ability is something that was established early in It's Always Sunny. Charlie's talents include perfect pitch (as seen in season 10, episode 4, "Charlie Work"), can play a range of instruments (season 11, episode 3, "The Gang Hits the Slopes"), and has even written a full musical (season 4, episode 13, "The Nightman Cometh").
The musical talents of Charlie not only provide It's Always Sunny with unforgettable songs but also potentially serve the demigod theory, too. Music was of huge importance in Celtic mythology, and in many stories was often used as a weapon, enchanting, deceiving, and disarming enemies. There is a specific god of music and poetry in the Celtic pantheon called Maponus, but many of its gods are associated with music due to its importance throughout Celtic mythology. If Charlie's father is indeed a Celtic god, it's logical to assume that his musical ability may be a hereditary power - much like Percy Jackson's innate ability to breathe underwater due to his father being Poseidon, Charlie Kelly may have inherited a natural musical talent from his own deific father.
Many Of Charlie's Other Traits Could Be Demigod Powers
Over the course of the many exploits of It's Always Sunny's gang, Charlie has been shown to have numerous other defining qualities. Charlie's love of alcohol and remarkable physical resilience often combine with comedic results: Charlie has survived being run over by a car (season 2, episode 1), shot in the head (season 1, episode 5), and taking part in Dennis and Mac's questionable training regimen (season 2, episode 5). The theory believes that this unnatural fortitude may also be a part of Charlie's demigod powers.
What's more, many of Charlie's traits feed into harmful stereotypes of Irish people. Charlie's love of alcohol and his apparent good luck (at least in comparison to the other members of It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia's cast) connect him on a somewhat offensive level to the Irish, which serves as a potentially problematic piece of evidence in support of the theory. However, It's Always Sunny's humor is relatively tone-deaf by design, which actually somehow makes the stereotypes feel all the more compelling as evidence for the demigod theory.
Charlie Claims To See Leprechauns
Charlie is undoubtedly a quirky character, and throughout the show's run, he's revealed a number of unorthodox beliefs. He often speaks about his fondness for ghouls (which he describes as "funny", "little", and "green"), his belief in demons, and even, at one point, claims to have seen a leprechaun. Though this is initially believed by the gang to be a hallucination, Charlie eventually catches a leprechaun. The idea that Charlie sees and believes in various monsters and mythological beings is presented as one of his quirks, but it's also in line with the world of Percy Jackson, in which demigods regularly encounter the mythological beasts and beings of legend.
Who Is Charlie's Father? How He Could Be A Celtic God
It's Always Sunny season 15, episode 6, "The Gang's Still in Ireland", reveals that Charlie's biological father is a man named Shelley Kelly. However, Charlie's mother is known to have been particularly promiscuous, making it entirely possible that Charlie's father wasn't Shelley at all. Even if Bonnie Kelly had narrowed down the date of Charlie's conception to her trip to Ireland, that still leaves a potential window for her to have become intimate with a Celtic god within that time.
It's also possible that Shelly himself may have been the embodiment of a Celtic god. Although he only briefly appears in It's Always Sunny season 15, Shelley Kelly is shown to share Charlie's musical talents, and his belief in various Celtic traditions and supernatural beings could point to him being a god himself. His death being at the core of season 15, episode 8, "The Gang Carries a Corpse Up a Mountain" certainly points to his mortality, but it's still possible that he wasn't Charlie's father at all. Ultimately, the identity of Charlie's real father has seemingly been revealed, although the theory offers an interesting context to the character's numerous abilities. The theory of Charlie's potential status as a Celtic demigod in It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia isn't entirely sound, but there's enough evidence to make it strangely compelling and thoroughly intriguing.