‘The Big Bang Theory’ Cast: Where Are They Now?

Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper

Parsons starred on The Big Bang Theory as the quirky, high-IQ Sheldon Cooper. For his performance, Parsons received four Primetime Emmy Awards for outstanding lead actor in a comedy series and the Golden Globe Award for best actor in a television series musical or comedy. However, after 12 seasons of the show, Parsons was ready to move on.

During his run on the series, Parsons kept busy with other projects, starring in films like The Big Year (2011), The Muppets (2012), Hidden Figures (2016) and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019).

Parsons has stuck around in the Big Bang Theory universe, where he executive produces and narrates the show’s spin-off prequel series, Young Sheldon. The actor has racked up additional producing credits on projects, including Netflix’s Special and Call Me Kat, which stars his former costar, Mayim Bialik. Parsons has also enjoyed a decades-long career in theater, notably leading the 2018 Tony-winning Broadway revival production of The Boys in the Band, which was adapted as a feature film for Netflix in 2020.

Parsons came out as gay in a 2012 interview with The New York Times, where he discussed his longtime partnership with then-boyfriend, now-husband, art director Todd Spiewak. The two got married in 2017.

Johnny Galecki as Leonard Hofstadter

Galecki played experimental physicist and Sheldon’s best friend, Leonard Hofstadter, a role that landed him a Primetime Emmy Award nomination in 2011 and several Screen Actors Guild Award nominations as part of the show’s ensemble.

During the series, Galecki was concurrently featured in films like Hancock (2008) alongside Will Smith and In Time (2011) with Amanda Seyfried and Justin Timberlake. He also made guest appearances on television shows like Entourage and the 2018 Roseanne reboot, which he reflected on as a very emotional experience. Since then, Galecki has taken a step back from acting.

Galecki dated costar and on-screen girlfriend-turned-wife Kaley Cuoco from 2008 to 2009, much to their fans’ delight during his run on The Big Bang Theory. They split amicably and remain close friends (and platonic awards show dates).

Galecki began dating Alaina Meyer in 2018, and the couple welcomed a son, Avery, in 2019. In 2020, PEOPLE reported the two had broken up.

Kaley Cuoco as Penny

Cuoco played the extroverted, aspiring actress Penny on The Big Bang Theory, who eventually weds Leonard. During her time on the show, Cuoco was featured in Killer Movie (2008) and The Penthouse (2011) and hosted the People’s Choice Awards in 2012 and 2013.

Since The Big Bang Theory wrapped, Cuoco joined the DC Universe to voice the titular character of the animated Harley Quinn series in 2019 and serves as an executive producer.

Cuoco’s production experience doesn’t begin or end there. In 2017, the actress founded Yes, Norman Productions, a TV production company that kicked off with an adaptation of Chris Bohjalian’s The Flight Attendant in 2020. Cuoco starred as Cassie Bowden, and executive produced the show. In 2021, it was announced that Cuoco would star in and executive produce a limited series, Doris Day: Her Own Story.

In 2011, two years after her breakup with Galecki, Cuoco announced her engagement to Josh “Lazie” Resnik, an addiction specialist. The couple ended their engagement five months later, and she became engaged to professional tennis player Ryan Sweeting shortly after. In December 2013, Cuoco and Sweeting tied the knot after three months of dating but divorced in 2016. Later that year, she began dating professional equestrian Karl Cook. They married in 2016 and divorced in 2021.

In May 2022, Cuoco confirmed her relationship with Ozark actor Tom Pelphrey, and in October 2022, announced that they were expecting a baby girl.

Simon Helberg as Howard Wolowitz

Helberg had been a comic actor for years before scoring a part on The Big Bang Theory, notably for his season-long run on MadTV in 2002. In the The Big Bang Theory, Helberg played wannabe ladies-man Howard Wolowitz, an aerospace engineer, ex-astronaut, and only squad member without a Ph.D.

While on The Big Bang Theory, Helberg acted in other projects, including the critically acclaimed Coen brothers’ film A Serious Man (2009) and, alongside Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins (2016). Two years after the show had wrapped, Helberg starred opposite Adam Driver in Annette (2021).

In 2007, Helberg married actress Jocelyn Towne, with whom he shares two children. In 2012, they welcomed a daughter, Adeline, and in 2014, a son, Wilder.

Kunal Nayyar as Raj Koothrappali

Nayyar plays Raj Koothrappali, particle astrophysicist and BFF to Leonard. During his time on the show, Nayyar participated in other projects, including doing voice work for animated features like Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012), Trolls (2016) and Nickelodeon’s Sanjay and Craig.

In 2015, Nayyar published his first book, Yes, My Accent is Real: and Some Other Things I Haven’t Told You, where he provides an account of his upbringing and career through a collection of self-deprecating essays. Nayyar returned to theater in 2015 in an Off-Broadway production of Jesse Eisenberg’s The Spoils.

He has remained a familiar face on television, appearing on shows like Netflix’s Criminal: UK and starring on Apple TV+’s Suspicion alongside Uma Thurman.

Nayyar married actress and model Neha Kapur in 2011.

Melissa Rauch as Bernadette Rostenkowski

Rauch entered the Big Bang Theory universe in season 3 as squeaky-voiced, fiery microbiologist Bernadette Rostenkowski, who began to date Howard soon after joining the friend group. She boasts many acting credits in addition to her part as Bernadette, including roles on True Blood, The Office and I Love You, Man (2009).

She co-wrote, co-produced and starred in the 2015 film The Bronze, which premiered at Sundance to critical acclaim. Rauch went on to provide the voice for Harley Quinn in the animated 2017 film Batman and Harley Quinn. In 2019, the actress published a children’s book titled The Tales of Tofu, which she wrote in conjunction with House Foods America, reflecting her passion for healthy eating. As of 2022, she stars in the NBC revival of Night Court, where she plays Judge Abby Stone.

Rauch is married to writer Winston Beigel, with whom she co-wrote The Bronze. In 2017, the couple welcomed a daughter, Sadie, and in 2020, a son, Brooks.

Mayim Bialik as Amy Farrah Fowler

Bialik made her Big Bang Theory debut in season 3 as Amy, a neurobiologist who joined the gang under the pretense of being a potential love match for Sheldon via an online dating site. The two characters eventually wed, but not before some serious ups and downs in their relationship.

Before joining the show, which earned her two Critics’ Choice Awards, Bialik starred as the titular character in NBC’s Blossom in the ’90s. She also enjoyed a successful career as a voiceover actress, with credits in shows like Kim Possible, Hey Arnold and Johnny Bravo.

During her run on The Big Bang Theory, Bialik participated in many other projects, including hosting a season-long reboot of Candid Camera starting in 2014 and in the Lifetime movie, The Flight Before Christmas (2015).

In 2020, Bialik began starring on Fox’s Call Me Kat, on which she is an executive producer alongside former Big Bang Theory costar Parsons. Bialik started working on Jeopardy in 2021, at first as a guest host, and eventually was promoted to a host, a role that she shares with Ken Jennings.

In addition to acting, Bialik is an author and academic. She has written and co-written books, including Beyond the Sling, Girling Up and Boying Up, relating to the science behind parenting and growing up. In 2017, following the Harvey Weinstein sexual abuse allegations, Bialik penned a New York Times op-ed about being a woman in the entertainment industry. She also founded a website, GrokNation, that promotes discussions of contemporary issues and social change.

Bialik married Michael Stone in 2003, with whom she shares two sons, Miles Roosevelt and Frederick Heschel. Stone and Bialik divorced in 2013. She has since been dating writer, poet and producer Jonathon Cohen. Together, they co-host the podcast Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown.