Veteran actor Shelly Desai, a fan favorite as Hwang, the intimidating landlord on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, has passed away.
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His Feb. 10 death was announced by family via Deadline. The cause of death for the 90-year-old was not disclosed.
Born on December 3, 1935, in Bombay, British India, Desai moved to the United States in the 1960s. Per Deadline, he originally planned to pursue a master’s degree in engineering but chose an acting career instead. Desai lived in Chicago and New York before settling in Los Angeles.
Desai’s career included appearances both Off-Broadway and on Broadway by the 1970s. He was in the cast of Gurney Campbell’s short-lived play Gandhi, directed by José Quintero, which opened and closed on the same night in October 1970. He returned to Broadway in 1981 in A Talent for Murder, which starred Claudette Colbert and Nancy Addison of Ryan’s Hope.
Per IMDb, Desai went on to build a prolific career as a character actor, making dozens of appearances in high-profile series such as St. Elsewhere, Hill Street Blues, The A-Team, Sledge Hammer!, Moonlighting, ER, Friends, NYPD Blue, and Ugly Betty.
Some of his fan-favorite guest appearances include lending his voice to 10 episodes of the 1990s kids’ show Where On Earth Is Carmen Sandiego? and playing a couple of characters on three episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm. In a 1991 episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Shelly Desai Landed His Signature Roles Later in His Career
However, it was two of his more recent roles that truly stood out as signature performances. He brought Carlos to life in 14 episodes of Men of a Certain Age (2009–2011). The character actor held his own alongside Ray Romano, Andre Braugher, and Scott Bakula.
Then he popped up as Hwang, the endlessly exasperated landlord on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. He was forever chasing Charlie (Charlie Day) and Frank (Danny DeVito) for their rent.
On the big screen, Desai appeared in films like Thelma & Louise (1991), Clifford (1994), and Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (2015). According to Deadline, he was still working just a month before his death, filming three AT&T commercials.
Desai is survived by his wife, Phyllis, stepdaughters April and Dawn, and grandchildren Sean, Sofia, and Dylan.