In season 8 of “The Huge Bang Idea,” Kaley Cuoco — who earned the lead position of Penny after a distinct actress performed the feminine lead within the present’s unaired pilot — finally ends up getting a “main” performing job, however it’s additionally a complete catastrophe. Apparently, Cuoco hated it … as did her co-star Johnny Galecki (who performed her erstwhile boyfriend turned husband Leonard Hofstadter) and the present’s creator Chuck Lorre.
Early in her profession as an actress in Los Angeles — earlier than the present’s narrative even begins — Penny seems in an clearly horrible, low-budget horror flick referred to as “Serial Ape-ist” and is understandably embarrassed by the entire thing. Then, within the present’s seventh season, “Star Trek” veteran Wil Wheaton — who performs himself on the present, showing semi-regularly as a serious nemesis for Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) — tries to persuade Penny to star in a sequel with him, titled “Serial Ape-ist 2: Monkey See, Monkey Kill.” Penny would not need to however wants the cash, so she says sure; finally, she will get fired, which comes as an enormous reduction. In keeping with Jessica Radloff’s e book “The Huge Bang Idea: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Collection,” Cuoco was depressing whereas filming these scenes, and Galecki knew it.
“Kaley didn’t like that storyline,” Galecki recalled. “After I noticed that the sequel was within the script, I used to be like, Oh f**okay. However I wished to help Kaley as a result of she would battle by way of these days. She was not completely happy.” Cuoco hated that performing the episodes additionally required her to be lined in hair from head to toe. “I used to be like, ‘Actually, you guys? That is what’s occurring?’ And Chuck simply thought it was so humorous. He beloved it. I by no means understood why.”
Kaley Cuoco thought Chuck Lorre beloved the Serial Ape-ist storyline, however he did not
Although Kaley Cuoco appeared satisfied that creator Chuck Lorre was married to the entire “Serial Ape-ist” plotline, he apparently wasn’t wild about it — and thinks the present might have carried out a greater job of developing with pretend performing jobs for Penny to take.
“I really do not recall loving it,” Lorre mused. “We wished Penny to have some small success in her dream of being a profitable actor, however it’s not my favourite episode.” Lorre expressed that the show-within-a-show scenes had been powerful, however that the purpose actually was to indicate Penny attempting to make one thing work that was destined to be horrible. In actual fact, Lorre thinks that he did a greater job of tackling the problems of actors on a TV present pretending to be aspiring actors on a later sequence, the Netflix unique sequence “The Kominsky Methodology.”
“It really type of performs into what grew to become a part of ‘The Kominsky Methodology,’ which is I did not need to make enjoyable of performing,” Lorre stated, recognizing that he did make enjoyable of Penny and her goals of changing into an actor on “The Huge Bang Idea.” Fortunately, he modified course for his Netflix venture. “I did not need to make enjoyable of badly written, badly acted performs or exhibits. In ‘Kominsky’ the scholars, for essentially the most half, are good,” Lorre defined. “They’ve chops. They aren’t horrible actors who do not know they’re horrible. That, to me, has been carried out. And I did not need to do it. I discover it extra fascinating to see anyone who is sweet at what they’re doing, struggling.”
Penny ultimately quits performing — however Kaley Cuoco likes that ending
Here is the excellent news: Chuck Lorre did give Kaley Cuoco an opportunity to let Penny shine as an actress on “The Huge Bang Idea,” particularly within the season 6 episode “The Monster Isolation.” In that installment, Leonard drags an unwilling Sheldon to see Penny carry out as Blanche DuBois in a small manufacturing of the well-known play “A Streetcar Named Want” … and Sheldon realizes Penny is extremely proficient, raving about her for his and Leonard’s complete journey residence. “I did love when Penny bought to indicate that she was really actress when she carried out in ‘A Streetcar Named Want,'” Cuoco advised Jessica Radloff within the e book. “Once we did the desk learn for that episode, Chuck pulled me apart to say, ‘, I need it to be good. I need Penny to be actress.’ I stated, ‘Actually?!'”
One other side of Penny’s journey that Cuoco really did love as nicely was, surprisingly, the truth that Penny ultimately quits performing and places these expertise to make use of in a very totally different discipline. Why? She thought it was extra reasonable than a plotline the place Penny booked a Marvel film or one thing. In the direction of the tip of the sequence, Penny joins her buddy Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz within the pharmaceutical business, the place she succeeds — and Cuoco felt like all of Penny’s years as an aspiring actor made sense for her character’s journey.
“I preferred that it was as reasonable because it was,” Cuoco revealed. “So many individuals are on the market who need to be actors, and who’re fairly good. And that is what is most heartbreaking about it as a result of she was really good. And her realization that that is that dream she’s had for therefore lengthy, however she additionally desires to get married and make actual cash … lots of people take care of that.” She continued, “And in some ways, Penny was utilizing her performing expertise in these pharmaceutical conferences, together with memorizing all the main points of these medication. It helped make her profitable, and I beloved that.” The truth is that not each proficient actor will get the possibility to land an enormous film, and holding Penny’s story reasonable is half the enjoyable.
“The Huge Bang Idea” is streaming on Max now.
