Actor Wil Wheaton has had a fairly unusual career, rocketing to fame at an early age first in the film “Stand By Me.” His star only rose when he starred as Wesley Crusher on “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” though he felt sabotaged by a “Star Trek” producer who stopped him from chasing additional film roles. When “Next Gen” ended, Wheaton was regularly in voice acting and small television roles before becoming a part of the pop culture conversation once more, but this time as a fictionalized version of himself on the hit CBS sitcom “The Big Bang Theory.” In the series, which follows a group of geeky friends as they try to navigate adulthood while still partially firmly planted in adolescence, Wheaton plays an evil version of his real-life self and the arch-nemesis of the show’s primary protagonist, Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons). What started as a small cameo turned into an ongoing bit that lasted over nine seasons and 17 episodes, expanding beyond just the series itself and becoming a small pop culture moment all of its own. (Seriously, I was not a “Big Bang” devotee and even I was aware of the “WHEAAAATONNNN!” moment in “The Wheaton Recurrence.)
In an interview with The Spectrum, Wheaton revealed that he almost didn’t take the cameo role in the first place and that he had to get a little bit of convincing from a talented friend. It’s a good thing, too, because it’s given Wheaton a chance to connect with a whole new generation of nerdy fans.
Wheaton worried that his Big Bang Theory cameo might limit his options
Wheaton’s Wesley Crusher had plenty of detractors, and his teenage confidence was a bit unnerving to one of his most esteemed co-stars, but he was also just a kid playing a role, and the hate that followed him from parts of the fandom was probably a little rough. So the idea of playing a version of himself that leaned into how some fans probably thought of him might have been cathartic, but when pitched to him by “Big Bang” co-creator Bill Prady, Wheaton was nervous that he would feel creatively limited in a recurring cameo where he was playing himself. He called up his friend John Rogers, who created the TNT drama “Leverage,” and Rogers gave him some strong advice:
“He said ‘Are you insane? It’s the best show on television! Call Bill Prady back right now and tell him, yes, or we’re not friends anymore!’ Of course I did, and still feel silly that I had to think about it.”
“The Big Bang Theory” is one of the most popular sitcoms of all time and has even spawned several spin-offs, including the popular “Young Sheldon” prequel series that only just ended in 2024. It’s not likely that Wheaton will be called back to cameo in any of the spin-offs, but even just his signing on for the original show turned out to be a pretty big deal… even if it was a little tricky to wrap his head around at first.
The Big Bang fandom was friendly despite Wheaton’s villain status
Wheaton went on to explain that it was a bit difficult initially to separate himself from the fictionalized Wil Wheaton, and he said that it “probably took 5 years” before he had totally separated the identities and really understood the role, but he had fun with it and “learned to approach him” just like any other character he played. While Wheaton was initially written in as a villain and rival to Sheldon, the actor says Sheldon’s fierce fans actually embraced him:
“It may be the only role in my career where the feedback has been universally positive. In the early years when Sheldon and I were rivals, Jim and I worked really hard to base that relationship in a reality where each character could justify his actions. Fans appreciated that it was never a cruel relationship, but always meant to be silly. Wil was just amused that Sheldon could get so easily riled. It was like I was giving Sheldon the materials to build a trap, then watching him build it and falling into it.”
Wheaton’s role grew over the years and eventually, he even got to run a Dungeons and Dragons game that included a fictionalized version of William Shatner (played by the Priceline Negotiator himself). Could Wheaton have imagined when he was a preteen on the set of “The Next Generation” that one day he would be hanging out with Captain Kirk himself, but it would be on a sitcom and they would be playing themselves? Unless he had one of those future-seeing Bajoran orbs, it’s unlikely, but thank goodness he agreed to “The Big Bang Theory” anyway.
