The Big Bang Theory is one of the most successful comedies in television history. The show ran for 12 seasons from 2007 to 2019. Although it was among the top 2 positions since 2012, season 11 reached the number one position. But the show had its share of criticism for offensive, sexist, and often racist jokes.
The Big Bang Theory had a cast of actors who played introverted and nerdy biologists and physicists. Then there was Penny, their neighbor who worked as a waitress while waiting for her acting career to take off. Over the seasons, the cast grew as the guys developed love interests.
The series had an impressive list of guest stars including James Earl Jones, Stan Lee and others like Christine Baranski and Regina King were seen in recurring roles.
What Is The Cast of The Big Bang Theory upto?
After the show ended in 2019, fans are curious to know what the cast is up to these days.
Kaley Cuoco (Penny)
Kaley Cuoco was the only female lead for the few seasons. She played the hot neighbor of Sheldon and Leonard. Leonard immediately fell for her and they went to date and break up and then date again in the following seasons.
Before the The Big Bang Theory, Cuoco played Bridget on 8 Simple Rules. After the success of the show, she plays Cassie on The Flight Attendant on HBO. That is not all, she also executively produces and stars in the adult animated series Harley Quinn, on HBO max.
Johnny Galecki (Leonard Hofstadter)
Galecki played the role of Leonard Hofstadter, an experimental physicist who was also Sheldon’s roommate and Penny’s love interest. His character did so well that he went on to become one of the highest-paid actors in the world with making over $900,000 per episode of the show.
After The Big Bang Theory ended, he appeared on The Connors. He also became the father of a baby boy with his then-girlfriend Alaina Meyer. The couple broke up soon after dating for two years.
Jim Parsons (Sheldon Cooper)
Parsons was the first one to say that he could not continue on with the series anymore before it ultimately ended. The Emmy winner played one of the lead characters on the show.
He was a part of several projects including his on-screen wife Bialik’s Call Me Kat. But one of his major engagements is with Young Sheldon, where he narrates the series and also acts as an executive producer.
Mayim Bialik (Amy Farrah Fowler)
Bialik joined the show in 2010 as Sheldon’s love interest, which initially started as an experiment. After The Big Bang Theory ended, she moved on to Call Me Kat and also hosted Jeopardy! National College Championship 2022.
Not many people know that she is a neuroscientist in real life and she also became a professor in the field. Bialik has two sons with ex-husband Michael Stone.
Kunal Nayyar (Rajesh Kuthrapalli)
Rajesh played the beloved Indian friend who loved romance but could not find the right partner. He was shy and had selected mutism, which he overcame in season 6. He was the only one from the group to not get married.
After BBT ended, Nayyar was seen in The Mindy Project and on Sullivan and Son. He also played Guy Diamond in Trolls and also appeared in Criminal: UK, Mira, Royal Detective, etc. Recently, he was to join Adam Sandler’s science fiction drama called Spaceman.
Simon Helberg (Howard Wolowitz)
Helberg played the role of a mama’s boy and self-proclaimed and borderline creepy ‘womanizer’. His short stature and colorful clothing made him stand out. After meeting his future wife Bernadette, Wolowitz changed his ways and became a loyal husband and doting father.
After BBT, Helberg took some well-deserved time off of television. But he could not stay away for long and came back with Annette.
He also voiced his younger self in Young Sheldon along with other members of the cast. Helberg currently stars in As They Made Us, a drama written and directed by his former costar Mayim Bialik.
Melissa Rauch (Bernadette Rostenkowski)
Rauch played the short but fierce Bernadette who started as Penny’s friend at the Cheesecake factory. She is a bright and ambitious woman, who is also manipulative and a bully sometimes. She goes on to marry Howard Wolowitz and became best friends with Amy and Penny.
After BBT, Rauch was seen in Animaniacs, Robot Chicken, and also The Chicken Squad. She was also seen next to Meryl Streep in the Netflix comedy-drama called The Laundromat.
Cast Salaries
Galecki and Parsons started off the show with a salary of $60,000 per episode while the costars like Kunal Nayyar and Helberg started with $45,000. As the show became successful, the cast got paid more and more.
By the last season, the cast was making over a million dollars per episode which put them on the list of the best-paid actors in the history of television.
However, not all actors were paid equally. Some of the actors like Kevin Sussman who played Stuart Bloom never really saw a hike in his salary even though his character’s presence grew with each season. His net worth is said to be around $3 million.
The cast remains good friends with one another and some of them also worked together after The Big Bang Theory ended. The main couple of the show Kaley Cuoco (Penny) and Johnny Galecki (Leonard) also dated in real life.
However, they broke up after two years in 2009. This was right when their character’s love life was heating up. But they managed to remain professional and have been great friends since then.
Although all of the actors are carrying on with other projects, The Big Bang Theory will likely remain one of the high points of all their lives. The cast getting along with each other is also another sign of a great show.
The actors have also made A LOT of money from the show, enough to possibly sustain a luxurious lifestyle for the rest of their lives. But it is their love for acting and creating something that keeps them going.
