Mary Elizabeth Ellis (born May 11, 1979) is an American actress. She is best known for her recurring roles as The Waitress on the FX comedy ''

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX (TV channel), FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charl ...

'' (2005–present), Nick's ex-girlfriend Caroline in the Fox sitcom ''

New Girl ''New Girl'' is an American television sitcom created by Elizabeth Meriwether and produced by 20th Century Fox Television for Fox that aired from September 20, 2011, to May 15, 2018. The series revolves around quirky teacher, Jessica Day ( Zo ...

'' (2011–2018), and Lisa Palmer on the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

horror-comedy '' Santa Clarita Diet'' (2017–2019). She starred as Amy in the shortlived

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

sitcom '' Perfect Couples'' (2010–2011) and Debbie Sanderson in the Fox sitcom '' The Grinder'' (2015–2016). More recently, she played Gary's mother Anita in '' Licorice Pizza'' (2021), directed by

Paul Thomas Anderson Paul Thomas Anderson (born June 26, 1970), also known by his initials PTA, is an American filmmaker. Often described as one of the most preeminent writer-directors of his generation, List of awards and nominations received by Paul Thomas Anders ...

Early life and education

Mary Elizabeth Ellis was born on May 11, 1979 in

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. She graduated from

Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...

in 2001.

Career

TV and film

Since the first season of the FX/ FXX comedy series ''

'' began airing in 2005, Ellis has been mostly known for her role as The Waitress, the object of Charlie Kelly's unrequited infatuation and obsession. In 2008, she co-wrote and starred as Olive in the independent film '' A Quiet Little Marriage''. In 2015, she got her first main role as Debbie Sanderson, co-starring with Fred Savage and

Rob Lowe Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and entertainment host. Following numerous television roles in the early 1980s, he came to prominence as a teen idol and member of the Brat Pack with starring roles in ...

in '' The Grinder''. In 2020, she appeared in Disney's '' Godmothered''. The next year, she appeared in '' Licorice Pizza'' (2021) as Momma Anita. Ellis has appeared in a number of other television series, including ''

Reno 911! ''Reno 911!'' is an American television sitcom created by Robert Ben Garant, Thomas Lennon and Kerri Kenney-Silver for Comedy Central. It is a mockumentary-style parody of law enforcement documentary shows, specifically '' Cops'', with comic ...

'', '' House M.D.,'' ''

Without a Trace ''Without a Trace'' is an American police procedural drama television series created by Hank Steinberg that aired on CBS from September 26, 2002, to May 19, 2009 with the total of seven seasons and 160 episodes. The series focuses the cases of ...

'', ''

Cold Case ''Cold Case'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series. It ran on CBS from September 28, 2003, to May 2, 2010. The series revolved around a fictionalized Philadelphia Police Department division that specializes in invest ...

'', ''

'', '' Happy Endings'', and Netflix's '' Santa Clarita Diet''.

Stage

Ellis and her ''It's Always Sunny'' colleague

Artemis Pebdani Artemis Pebdani is an American actress, best known for her roles as Susan Ross on ''Scandal (TV series), Scandal'', Artemis Dubois on ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia,'' and Gramma Alice on ''Big City Greens''. Early life Pebdani was born and ...

were as of 2011 members of the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

-based performance group Discount Cruise to Hell. Together, they wrote and starred in the stage show ''Mother May I Dance with Mary Jane's Fist?: A Lifetime Original Play'' at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles.

Music videos

She has also appeared music videos, including "Diaper Money" (2013) for

The Lonely Island The Lonely Island is an American comedy trio, formed by Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer in Berkeley, California, in 2001. They have written for and starred in the American TV program ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL''). The th ...

, and "

Anti-Hero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero or two words anti hero) or anti-heroine is a character in a narrative (in literature, film, TV, etc.) who may lack some conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism and morality. Al ...

" (2022) for

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Known for her autobiographical songwriting, artistic versatility, and Cultural impact of Taylor Swift, cultural impact, Swift is one of the Best selling artists, w ...

. Ellis was a series regular on the

romantic comedy series '' Perfect Couples'', which ran for one season in 2011.

Personal life

Ellis and Charlie Day met in 2001 and began dating immediately. They were married on March 4, 2006.Interview with Charlie Day & Mary Elizabeth Ellis
MonsterFresh.com Their son was born in 2011. The couple have an extensive history of appearing on shows together. In 2004, they auditioned together as incestuous siblings for ''

'' and landed the roles. Around the same time, Ellis also began playing The Waitress in home movies Day was making. The films became the pilot episode of ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' in 2005, in which Ellis stars.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web

Music videos

Theatre

References

External links

*
"The Days of Disco"
interview with Mary Elizabeth Ellis and Charlie Day on MonsterFresh.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Mary Elizabeth Living people 21st-century American actresses 1979 births Actresses from Mississippi American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American women comedians Southern Methodist University alumni 21st-century American comedians Comedians from Mississippi