Everyone knows Seth MacFarlane as the guy who voices a talking dog and a baby with a British accent. He’s the king of edgy cutaway gags. But for a few minutes on a Tuesday morning in 2001, he was just another guy running late for a flight at Logan International Airport in Boston.
Luck is a weird thing.
If Seth MacFarlane had been ten minutes faster, the entire landscape of modern comedy would look completely different. No Ted. No The Orville. Certainly no 20-plus seasons of Family Guy.
The Morning Seth MacFarlane on 9/11 Almost Changed Everything
The story basically starts with a hangover and a clerical error.
MacFarlane was scheduled to be on American Airlines Flight 11. That was the first plane. The one that hit the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
He had spent the previous night giving a lecture at his alma mater, the Rhode Island School of Design. After the talk, he did what most people in their late 20s do after a successful gig: he went out. He had some drinks. He stayed up too late.
Honestly, it’s the most "Seth MacFarlane" way to survive a tragedy.
When he woke up the next morning, he was battling the aftermath of that night out. To make matters worse, his travel agent had messed up the itinerary. The agent wrote down that the flight was departing at 8:15 a.m. In reality, the gate was closing at 7:45 a.m.
He pulled up to the airport around 7:30 a.m. By the time he reached the counter, the gate had just closed.
He was ten minutes late.
Ten Minutes and a Shot of Whiskey
MacFarlane didn't know he had just dodged death. He was just annoyed. He did what any frustrated traveler does—he booked the next available flight and went to find a place to sleep.
He ended up in the airport lounge.
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"I went to sleep in the lounge, woke up 45 minutes later, and it was commotion," MacFarlane later told Adam Carolla. He watched the news on the lounge TV. He saw the first tower burning. Then he heard the flight number.
American Airlines Flight 11.
He turned to the guy next to him and said, "My God, that was the flight I was supposed to be on."
The bartender at the airport reportedly saw how white MacFarlane had turned and handed him a shot of whiskey. It’s one of those moments that feels like a movie script, but it’s just the reality of how thin the line is between being here and not being here.
The Mark Wahlberg Connection
It wasn't just Seth. Mark Wahlberg was also supposed to be on that exact same flight.
Wahlberg and his friends decided at the very last minute to change their plans and charter a plane to a film festival in Toronto instead. It's a bizarre coincidence that two of the biggest names in Hollywood—who would eventually work together on Ted—were both scheduled for Seat 3B and whatever other first-class spots were on that manifest.
While Wahlberg later caught some heat for some rather "tough guy" comments about what he would have done if he were on the plane, MacFarlane has always taken a much more reserved, almost clinical approach to the event.
Why Seth MacFarlane on 9/11 Doesn't Talk About It Much
You’d think a guy who makes a living being loud would shout this story from the rooftops. He doesn't.
MacFarlane has been pretty open about the fact that he doesn't feel "chosen" or "saved" by a higher power. He’s a staunch atheist. To him, it wasn't fate. It was just a series of mundane, human failures that happened to save his life.
- A travel agent's typo.
- A few too many beers.
- Boston traffic.
He’s mentioned in interviews that he feels "shaken" by it when he thinks about it, but he doesn't let it define his work. He’s even parodied the event in Family Guy. In the episode "Back to the Pilot," Brian and Stewie go back in time to 9/11. Brian tries to stop the attacks, which ends up creating a dystopian future where the civil war breaks out and nuclear bombs go off.
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It’s a dark, weird way of processing trauma. But that’s how he works.
The Legacy of a Missed Flight
What happens if he makes that flight?
In 2001, Family Guy was actually struggling. It had been canceled and then brought back. It wasn't the juggernaut it is now. If MacFarlane dies that morning, the show almost certainly dies with him. There is no American Dad. There is no billion-dollar animation empire.
The "Seth MacFarlane on 9/11" story is a reminder of how much of our lives are dictated by total randomness.
He missed a flight because he was hungover. That’s it. That’s the whole "miracle."
Actionable Takeaways from a Near-Miss
It’s easy to look at a story like this and just see a celebrity trivia fact. But there's a deeper level to how MacFarlane handled the aftermath that's actually worth noting:
- Perspective on "Luck": MacFarlane treats his survival as a coincidence, not a destiny. This keeps him grounded. Avoiding the "why me?" trap is huge for mental health after a near-miss.
- Productivity through Urgency: After 2001, MacFarlane's output became insane. Whether conscious or not, he leaned into his career with a ferocity that suggests he knows he's on "bonus time."
- Humor as a Shield: He uses his platform to poke at the very things that scare him. It’s a valid, if controversial, way to deal with the "what-ifs."
If you’re ever feeling behind or like you’re failing because you’re running late, just remember that sometimes, being ten minutes behind is the best thing that ever happened to you. MacFarlane’s life is proof that the mistakes we beat ourselves up for—oversleeping, missing an appointment—can sometimes be the only reason we're still here to make more mistakes tomorrow.