Kaitlin Olson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kaitlin Olson
Olson at the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con
Born	Kaitlin Willow Olson (1975-08-18) August 18, 1975 (age 49) Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Oregon
Occupation	Actress comedian
Years active	2000–present
Spouse(s)	Rob McElhenney ​ (m. 2008)​
Children	2

Kaitlin Willow Olson McElhenney (born August 18, 1975) is an American actress best known for her roles as Deandra "Sweet Dee" Reynolds on the long-running FX comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005–present), Mackenzie "Mickey" Molng in the Fox comedy series The Mick (2017–2018) and DJ Vance on HBO Max's comedy-drama Hacks (2021-present).

Olson began her career in the Sunday Company at the Groundlings in Los Angeles. She played several minor roles in various television comedies including Becky on Curb Your Enthusiam (1999-2024) before she was cast as Dee Reynolds on It's Always Sunny. Since then, she has gone on to appear in several comedy films, including Leap Year (2010), The Heat (2013), Vacation (2015), Finding Dory (2016), Arizona (2018) and Champions (2023).

Olson received her first Emmy nomination for the role of Cricket Melfi in the Quibi comedy series Flipped (2020), in the category of Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series. She then went on to receive two more Emmy nominations for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series in 2022 and 2024 for her role as DJ in Hacks.

Early life

Olson was born in Portland, Oregon, on August 18, 1975, to Donald Lee Olson, a publisher, and Melinda Leora, a nurse. Shortly after her birth, Olson relocated with her family to Spokane, Washington, then to Vashon Island, Washington, in Puget Sound, 13 mi (21 km) west of Seattle, where she lived until age eight. Her family subsequently relocated back to the Portland area, settling in Tualatin, where Olson grew up on a farm. Her father worked as the publisher of the Portland Tribune from 2000 to 2001.

At age twelve, Olson was involved in a serious bicycle accident involving a vehicle, resulting in a fractured skull requiring reconstructive surgery. She graduated from Tigard High School in Tigard, Oregon in 1993.

Olson studied theater at the University of Oregon, graduating with a bachelor's degree in theater arts in 1997. After college, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting professionally.

Career

Olson was a member of The Groundlings Sunday Company along with Dax Shepard. She toured with the USO to Bosnia, Kosovo and Norway. In 2000, she made her debut television appearance on HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm in the recurring role of Cheryl Hines's sister. Olson also made several guest appearances in films and television series including The Drew Carey Show, The Jamie Kennedy Experiment, Out of Practice, Miss Match, Family Guy, and Punk'd. She had a minor role in the film Coyote Ugly.

In 2004, Olson was cast as Deandra "Sweet Dee" Reynolds in the FX sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005-present), one of the then-four (later five) main characters on the show. She was particularly noted for her physical comedy.

Olson voiced the role of Ethel in the first season of the Comedy Central animated series Brickleberry. ..... Olson played a recurring role as Hartley Underwood, the "one-armed" neighbor in the FX series The Riches. In 2016, she provided the voice of Destiny in Disney's Finding Dory.

Olson then starred in the Fox sitcom The Mick, which premiered in January 2017. She served as the executive producer for the series. The second season of The Mick premiered in September 2017. Fox canceled the series after the second season ended in April 2018.

Since 2021, Olson has guest starred in Hacks as DJ, Deborah Vance's troubled daughter. She received two Emmy nominations for this role.

Since 2024, Olson has starred as the lead in the ABC network crime drama High Potential, a remake of the French-Belgian series HPI.

Personal life

Olson with husband Rob McElhenney, 2010

Olson married her It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia co-star, Rob McElhenney, in Malibu, California on September 27, 2008. The couple started secretly dating during the second season of the series.

In 2009, McElhenney and Olson announced their purchase of Skinner's Bar in Philadelphia; it was renamed Mac's Tavern. In 2010, Olson went into labor at a home game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies; their son Axel was born in their California home as planned. Their second son was born in 2012.

In June 2016, the Human Rights Campaign released a video in tribute to the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting; in the video, Olson and others narrated the stories of the people killed there.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Web

Music videos

Awards

See also

In Spanish: Kaitlin Olson para niños