Kaley Cuoco's Casting Helped Get 'The Big Bang Theory' Greenlit

The Big Bang Theory was almost a very different show.

A lot of fans of the show know that before Kaley Cuoco was cast as Penny, it was Amanda Walsh who played the female lead, Katie.

However, after the pilot was shot and presented to the network, the character of Katie and a few other elements weren’t perceived that well.

That’s when the show was reworked a bit, and Kaley was cast as Penny, and according to former CBS executive Nina Tassler, it was Kaley who helped the show make it to the air.

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Nina spoke to Emmy Magazine in a new interview, sharing that there was a lot that did work in the pilot, there were a few things that didn’t.

“There was so much about the pilot that did work. But there were parts of the script that didn’t work, and we had to recast an actress,” she shared.

The original character, Katie, was described as “worldlier” and was more harsh to Sheldon and Leonard. Something that’s the opposite of Penny.

Nina went on, saying that series creator “[Chuck Lorre] is such an extraordinary talent. He had a great concept and wonderful chemistry between the two leads, so I asked him if he would try again. And he immediately said, to his credit, ‘You’re right, I know I can do better. Thank you for this opportunity, and we’ll figure it out.’”

That was the point where Kaley was added to the cast as Penny.

“Kaley Cuoco joined the cast, and she was the secret sauce,” Nina says. “Chuck and Bill Prady delivered a pilot script, and the rest is history.”

The Big Bang Theory, which also stars Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar, Mayim Bialik, and Melissa Rauch, still airs in syndication on TBS and is streaming on Max.

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