Hauser was a huge fan of the show before and after they put him in that makeup

As a massive fan of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Emmy-winning actor Paul Walter Hauser says that landing a role on the show and stepping onto the set made him feel like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. He must have been talking about the Diana Ross version of Dorothy.

Of all the Hollywood stars who have debased themselves on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Hauser is one of those rare awards-winners whose contribution to the show’s canon is simultaneously invaluable and overlooked, partially because of the makeup that Always Sunny slathered all over his face — and I’m not talking about the clown get-up. Long before Hauser starred in Oscar-nominated movies like Richard Jewel and BlacKkKlansman, he had a one-episode performance as the bullied Juggalo Richie in the 2010 Always Sunny episode “Dee Reynolds: Shaping America’s Youth,” an experience he has since described as an absolute dream come true.

If you’ve only watched Always Sunny on streaming services in the last few years, you’d think that Hauser was actually dreaming when he went on the show. “Dee Reynolds: Shaping America’s Youth” has since been scrubbed from the major platforms due to its intentionally and pointedly tasteless depiction of blackface. Nevertheless, Hauser went on the sports podcast