When it comes to ending popular, long-running TV shows, it’s impossible for showrunners to please all of their fans. With the masses calling for a reshoot after finally seeing who took the crown in the final episode of Game of Thrones and public outcry over the controversial How I Met Your Mother ending that undid years of character development, the last moments can clearly make or break a series. CBS’s hit sitcom The Big Bang Theory unfortunately fell short of expectations for one of its beloved characters.
After 12 seasons of nerdy hijinks, endearing social-awkwardness, and endless laughs, the comedy wrapped up with its series finale, “The Stockholm Syndrome,” in 2019. The episode culminates with Sheldon (Jim Parsons) and Amy’s (Mayim Bialik) Nobel Prize win in Physics, Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) and Howard (Simon Helberg) getting away from the kids for the first time, Raj’s (Kunal Nayyar) break-up with Anu (Rati Gupta), as well as Penny (Kaley Cuoco) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki) trying to keep a pregnancy secret. Although it was a generally well-received ending, some fans and cast members weren’t entirely happy, including star Kaley Cuoco, who is disappointed in Penny’s maternal fate.
Kaley Cuoco Hates That Penny Ends Up Pregnant
Throughout the entire series, Penny was adamant that she didn’t want kids. Considering Leonard wanted to eventually become a father, even commenting in the pilot that the will-they-or-won’t-they couple’s children would be both “smart and beautiful,” it’s unsurprising that the two break-up multiple times during the show’s run. With conflicting life goals and Penny’s hesitancy to settle down, their desired paths seemed too incompatible for a romantic relationship to last.
Regardless, showrunners decided to leave audiences with an unexpectedly pregnant Penny (it’s Leonard’s baby, of course). During an interview with Jessica Radloff for the 2022 book The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series, Cuoco admitted that she wasn’t thrilled about it because it took away much-needed representation for intentionally child-free women, “It was cute how the writers did it at the end with Penny’s surprise pregnancy, and all in all I’m glad, but I was actually voting for her not to. I loved that she was like, ‘No, I don’t really want them'”.
Not only was the plot twist a writing choice that didn’t fit the character and reinforced archaic ideas about all women wanting to be mothers (even if they say they don’t), but it also didn’t make sense with where Penny was at in her career. Cuoco went on to say that “Penny became this career-woman, and she was really growing in her job and she loved going out with her friends and she admitted that. She didn’t want her life to change”. From a wannabe actress to becoming a superstar saleswoman at the pharmaceutical firm ZenGen, it’s hard to believe that all her professional progression throughout the seasons still led her to a baby-filled fate she didn’t want. And where did all of Penny’s fears and hesitation about settling down suddenly go?
Showrunners Defend Their Decision
Kaley Cuoco wasn’t the only one interviewed for Radloff’s book. When the entertainment writer/editor asked executive producer Steve Holland about Cuoco’s comments, he was understanding and even agreed with her to some degree. Holland confessed, “I wish we had earned it a little bit more, getting to that reveal. Some people called us out, and maybe rightly so, that Penny made the decision not to have kids and was OK with it, and then ended up pregnant. People were like, ‘Why does she have to? Why can’t she be okay without kids?’ And those are perfectly legitimate feelings”. So, in true Game of Thrones Season 8 fashion, showrunners rushed to fit in the twist before it fully made sense to viewers.
Now, there is a time jump in the last episodes, but Penny’s odd change of heart still feels abrupt. Holland explained that they tried to do it in a way that fit her narrative better, like giving her a disappointing pregnancy scare instead, but, ultimately, the team went for the full reveal in an attempt to honor Penny and Leonard’s relationship and the “smart and beautiful” line that started it all. Also, since the pregnancy wasn’t intentional, it doesn’t entirely negate Penny’s earlier desire not to have them. When it comes to the unexpected, oftentimes people (and characters) may not know what choice they are going to make in certain situations until they suddenly find themselves in them. Thus, Penny’s ending may be a disappointing choice for some fans, but not an inconceivable one.
A Full-Circle Finale
Despite Cuoco’s dismay about Penny’s fate, she still made peace with The Big Bang Theory finale. The last scene is shot in Leonard and Penny’s living room, the whole gang eating Chinese food around the coffee table — the same set-up from the show’s beginning. Cuoco described it as “unbelievable” and took comfort in the final moments:
“I loved that I got to wear the aqua-and-purple shirt that I wore in the pilot — and the hundredth — again for that moment. It was so Penny. So to then end it like that, sitting next to Leonard and him touching Penny’s stomach … it was the perfect cap. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way”.
Even with the jarring change in direction in Penny’s life, fans can still enjoy a full-circle ending to say goodbye to their favorite characters right where they first met. The Big Bang Theory is currently available to stream on Max.
