Suddenly excluding a main character from a TV series isn’t a common occurrence, especially for those with ensemble casts, but sometimes showrunners don’t really have a choice. Unfortunately, while hit sitcom turned franchise The Big Bang Theory was airing its fourth season, its writers were confronted with such a decision, unexpectedly needing to pivot around Kaley Cuoco’s temporary absence as Penny.
The series mostly relies on the chemistry between its starring friend group to succeed. Without Sheldon’s antics and mishaps, fans wouldn’t get Leonard’s hilarious annoyance. Without Raj’s endearingly shy and sarcastic humor paired with Howard’s inappropriate jokes, the latter character would’ve come across as grating. And without Penny’s confidence and social skills, there wouldn’t be the personified glue that holds them all together. Including everyone was essential in keeping the characters compelling enough for audiences throughout the show’s run.
So, why exactly were its writers forced to partially leave out Penny in the flagship series?
Which Episodes of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ Exclude Penny?
There were two full episodes without Penny early on in Season 4 of The Big Bang Theory. The character was absent in Episode 5, “The Desperation Emanation,” and Episode 6, “The Irish Pub Formulation.” Luckily, despite Penny and Leonard’s ongoing will-they-or-won’t-they storyline throughout the series, they weren’t dating at this point. Had they been together, it would’ve been even more difficult for showrunners to explain why Penny was noticeably missing.
In fact, “The Desperation Emanation” actually uses the couple’s separation within its premise, which centers on Leonard’s unhappiness in his dating life. Now single, he calls on Howard to invoke their Girlfriend Pact, hoping to find a match with one of Bernadette’s friends. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out, but it gave showrunners some time to explore Leonard’s re-entrance into the dating scene — an idea that made Penny’s absence make sense.
Then, in “The Irish Pub Formulation,” the writers set Leonard up again. This time, fans saw him develop a new, secret relationship with Raj’s sister, Priya. The couple got together behind Raj’s back, which allowed the story to focus on the betrayal between friends, so leaving out even the mention of Penny wasn’t completely outlandish. However, since she appears in every other episode in the series, the sudden absence was still hard to miss.
Kaley Cuoco Took the Showbiz Idiom “Break a Leg” Too Seriously
Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, and Raj were in every single episode of The Big Bang Theory (unless you count the latter half not being in the unaired pilot), but Penny’s double absence was unavoidable. Outside the show, Cuoco is an accomplished equestrian. Despite her long-time experience with horses, she took a bad spill while riding one and broke her leg.
During an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the actress explained that she was thrown off the horse during a weekend riding lesson. The initial fall wasn’t an issue, but the animal was still spooked while she was on the ground and, when trying to jump over her, it accidentally landed on her leg. Ouch!
Cuoco was then rushed to the hospital, where she had metal bars surgically inserted to keep her bones in place while she recovered. It goes without saying that a lengthy healing process ensued. The series needed to continue filming before Cuoco was ready to get back on the horse (couldn’t resist) as Penny, so showrunners wrote around her necessary absence while she was on the mend.
How ‘The Big Bang Theory’ Worked Around Kaley Cuoco’s Injury
In Season 4, Kaley Cuoco wasn’t able to make a full return to work even outside the two episodes where Penny was written out. The actress had a cast on her leg for a while following her recovery from surgery. If Penny had returned and been suddenly in a cast, the writers would’ve had to address the injury to audiences. However, they figured out a way to rework her role to hide the cast until she fully healed and had it removed: Penny started working as a bartender outside of her usual waitressing gig at The Cheesecake Factory.
The job change allowed Penny to appear on-screen throughout Season 4 behind a bar, effectively covering her injury from view until she fully healed. Considering the sitcom had plenty of odd storylines with its characters, especially with Penny’s struggle as an actress, the career shift wasn’t surprising. Unfortunately, without being able to fully engage with the rest of the group and their misadventures from behind a bar, Penny’s spirited personality was still only partially present, making for a deflated tonal difference in Season 4 that fans couldn’t help but notice.
