American actress Kaley Cuoco has explained the reality of what it was like working onThe Big Bang Theory.
The popular TV sitcom ran for nearly 300 episodes across 12 seasons, giving us the iconic relationship between Leonard and Penny, who is introduced to the gang of young scientists.
Much was made about the how much the stars were earning from each episode, with the likes of Cuoco, Jim Parsons (Sheldon), Johnny Galecki (Leonard), Simon Helberg (Howard) and Kunal Nayyar (Raj) all earning around $1 million per episode by the latter seasons.
However, despite the show's massive success, things weren't all sunshine and rainbows, especially when Cuoco and Galecki's relationship broke down in real life, with the 40-year-old hitting out at the show's director after including on-screen sex scenes with her ex.
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Speaking in a 2022 Vanity Fair article, Cuoco said: “All of a sudden [after their breakup], we started noticing there were extra makeout scenes for our characters, and/or sex scenes.
“I was like, ‘I think Chuck is f*****g with us!’ We were convinced. Convinced!"
Speaking to the Independent, Cuoco talked about her experience over the 12 years of filming: "I was constantly trying to keep this group together desperately, and we all really did love each other, but it was 12 years,” she says. “There were ups and downs. I did a lot of hand-holding, and I think I did the best that I could. But, you know, these kinds of shows... it was an explosion of money and fame and became something so much bigger than any of us could have imagined. So of course there was a little bit of drama.”
Despite the show's popularity, although Cuoco's partner Tom Pelphrey later admitted to having never seen the show, the actors faced their fair share of criticism when the eye-watering amount they were making was first reported.
“It was weird,” Cuoco recalls. “Would anyone want people sharing what they make? Or comparing what they make to [other people]?
“We’re in the public eye, so that stuff is going to be known. If you’re like, ‘oh, I wish people didn’t know that’, well… then don’t be famous.”
However, in spite of the drama that came with filming, and the backlash of their incredible wages, she still acknowledges the love that fans have for the show.
She concluded: “It was lightning in a bottle, and a very special moment in time that people love to this day, and will hopefully love forever.
"I learnt so much from Big Bang as an actor, as a human, as a businesswoman.”
Things could have been very different for the 8 Simple Rules actress however, as she was initially rejected for the role of the bubbly Cheesecake Factory waitress.
Topics: Kaley Cuoco
James Moorhouse