The Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom media franchise created by Steven Molaro, Bill Prady and Chuck Lorre, primarily based on the Brady and Lorre television series The Big Bang Theory (2007–2019) and its spin-offs Young Sheldon (2017–2024) and Stuart, Denise & Bert (2025), and the former's spin-off Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage (2024–present). The fictional universe is informally referred to as the "Big-Bang-verse" or simply the "Bang-verse".[1][2][3]
| The Big Bang Theory franchise | |
|---|---|
| Created by | |
| Original work | The Big Bang Theory unaired pilot (2007) |
| Owner | Chuck Lorre Productions |
| Years | 2007–present |
| Films and television | |
| Television series |
|
| Audio | |
| Original music | |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Special | Unraveling the Mystery: A Big Bang Farewell (2019) |
| Adaptations | The Theorists (2010) |
The Big Bang Theory initially revolved around five characters: Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki) and Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons), both physicists at Caltech, who share an apartment; Penny (Kaley Cuoco), a waitress and aspiring actress who lives across the hall; and Leonard and Sheldon's similarly geeky and socially awkward friends and coworkers, aerospace engineer Howard Wolowitz (Simon Helberg) and astrophysicist Raj Koothrappali (Kunal Nayyar).[4][5] Over time, supporting characters were promoted to starring roles, including neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik), microbiologist Bernadette Rostenkowski (Melissa Rauch), and comic book store owner Stuart Bloom (Kevin Sussman). Young Sheldon, the prequel series, narrated by Parsons, follows a younger Sheldon Cooper (Iain Armitage) during his early life as a child prodigy, with his mother Mary (Zoe Perry), father George (Lance Barber), brother Georgie (Montana Jordan), twin sister Missy (Raegan Revord), and grandmother Connie/"Meemaw" (Annie Potts).[6][7] Over time, supporting characters were promoted to starring roles, including pastor Jeff Difford (Matt Hobby), neighbour Billy Sparks (Wyatt McClure), and Georgie's wife Mandy (Emily Osment). Its own sequel series, Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage, follows newlywed Georgie (Jordan) and Mandy (Osment) as they move in with the latter's family, the McAllisters, including father Jim (Will Sasso), mother Audrey (Rachel Bay Jones), and brother Connor (Dougie Baldwin), as well as neighbour Ruben (Jessie Prez). Stuart, Denise & Bert, a sequel to the Big Bang Theory, will follow Stuart (Bloom), his girlfriend Denise (Lauren Lapkus), and friend Bert (Brian Posehn).
The Big Bang Theory and Stuart, Denise & Bert are set in Pasadena, California, while Young Sheldon and Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage are set in the fictional town of Medford, Texas.
The The Big Bang Theory franchise has since expanded across several different mediums and multimedia platforms, with varying degrees of contributions from its cast and crew, including the Russian-language unofficial remake The Theorists, the cast of which were not informed of its unauthorised nature.[8]
Television series
editThe Big Bang Theory (2007–2024)
editYoung Sheldon (2017–2024)
editGeorgie & Mandy's First Marriage (2024–present)
editIn January 2024, it was announced that there will be a spin-off series of Young Sheldon focused on Georgie Cooper and Mandy McAllister that will be slated for the 2024–25 season on CBS.[9]
Stuart, Denise & Bert (2025)
editOn April 12, 2023, it was announced that a spin-off of the original series was in development.[10] On October 10, 2024, it was announced that the third spin-off will feature Stuart Bloom, Denise, and Bert Kibbler, with Kevin Sussman, Lauren Lapkus, and Brian Posehn reprising their roles.[11]
Adaptations
editThe Theorists (2010)
editThrough the use of his vanity cards at the end of episodes, Lorre alleged that the program had been plagiarized by a show produced and aired in Belarus in 2010.[12] Officially titled Теоретики (The Theorists), the show features "clones" of the main characters, a similar opening sequence, and what appears to be a very close Russian translation of the scripts.[13] Lorre expressed annoyance and described his inquiry with the Warner Bros. legal department about options. The television production company and station's close relationship with the Belarus government was cited as the reason that any attempt to claim copyright infringement would be in vain because the company copying the episodes is operated by the government.[14]
However, no legal action was required to end production of the other show: as soon as it became known that the show was unlicensed, the actors quit and the producers canceled it.[15] Dmitriy Tankovich (who plays Leonard's counterpart, "Seva") said in an interview,
I'm upset. At first, the actors were told all legal issues were resolved. We didn't know it wasn't the case, so when the creators of The Big Bang Theory started talking about the show, I was embarrassed. I can't understand why our people first do, and then think. I consider this to be the rock bottom of my career. And I don't want to take part in a stolen show.[8]
Recurring cast and characters
editThis section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in multiple television series.
- An empty, dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the television series, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- E indicates an appearance not included in the theatrical cut.
- G indicates a guest appearance in the television series.
- R indicates a recurring role in the television series.
- V indicates a voice-only role.
- Y indicates a younger version of the character.
Other media
editOn March 16, 2014, a Lego Ideas project[16] portraying the living room scene in Lego style with the main cast as mini-figures reached 10,000 supporters on the platform, which qualified it to be considered as an official set by the Lego Ideas review board. On November 7, 2014, Lego Ideas approved the design and began refining it. The set was released in August 2015, with an exclusive pre-sale taking place at San Diego Comic-Con.
References
edit- ^ Brown, Adam (June 1, 2024). "Can The Big Bang Theory Franchise Survive Without Sheldon?". MovieWeb. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
- ^ Abdullah, Immy (March 6, 2024). "Jim Parsons and Mayim Bialik to reprise iconic Big Bang Theory roles in Young Sheldon series finale". Nine.com. Retrieved March 6, 2024.
- ^ Smith, Jeremy (September 22, 2024). "How Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Deals With That Major Big Bang Theory Death". Slash Film. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
- ^ Strauss, Gary (April 11, 2007). "There's a science to CBS' Big Bang Theory". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 22, 2009. Retrieved November 7, 2008.
- ^ Pierce, Scott D. (October 8, 2007). "He's a genius". Deseret News. Archived from the original on May 23, 2010. Retrieved December 11, 2008.
- ^ "Young Sheldon (2017) s02e011 Episode Script". Springfield Scripts. Archived from the original on January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
- ^ Bhatt, Jinal (July 15, 2019). "Young Sheldon's Iain Armitage Talks About Playing The 9 YO Version Of The Most Beloved Genius on Television". Mashable India. Archived from the original on October 16, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
- ^ a b "'The Theorists' actors don't want to stay with a stolen project". Xaptbir97 (in Russian). April 28, 2017. Archived from the original on May 29, 2010.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (2024-01-12). "'Young Sheldon' Spinoff About Georgie & Mandy Nears CBS Series Order From Chuck Lorre, Steven Molaro & Steve Holland". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
- ^ Hailu, Selome (April 12, 2023). "New 'Big Bang Theory' Spinoff in Development at HBO Max". Variety. Archived from the original on April 15, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
- ^ Otterson, Joe (October 10, 2024). "'Big Bang Theory' Spinoff in Development at Max Adds Brian Posehn, Lauren Lapkus, Kevin Sussman". Variety. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
- ^ "'Big Bang' In Belarus: The Theft of a Sitcom (video)". February 9, 2010. Archived from the original on September 28, 2021. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
- ^ Lyons, Margaret (February 9, 2010). "'The Theorists': 'Big Bang Theory''s big Belarusian rip-off". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on December 25, 2020.
- ^ Lorre, Chuck (February 8, 2010). "Vanity Card #277". The Official Vanity Card Archives. Chuck Lorre Productions. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010.
- ^ "STV canceled the pirated show 'The Theorists'". Xaptbir97 (in Russian). February 18, 2010. Archived from the original on April 12, 2010.
- ^ "Lego Ideas The Big Bang Theory List". Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
External links
edit- The Big Bang Theory – official site, Warner Bros.
- {{Netflix title}} template missing ID and not present in Wikidata.
- The Big Bang Theory at IMDbThe ID "tt0898266" is unknown to the system. Please use a valid entity ID.
- Young Sheldon – official site, Warner Bros.
- {{Netflix title}} template missing ID and not present in Wikidata.
- Young Sheldon at IMDbThe ID "tt6226232" is unknown to the system. Please use a valid entity ID.