When The Big Bang Theory ended, many people were devastated. Although the show had been on for twelve seasons, a lot of people would’ve been quite happy to have the show film and go on for an infinite number of seasons.
It turns out, we could’ve gotten at least two more, but unfortunately, not all members of the cast were down for it.
It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since *The Big Bang Theory* went off the air.
The long-running sitcom was actually on the air for twelve seasons, which is super impressive! It aired 279 episodes over the course of its run (which means we were so close to 300, too!) and amassed countless fans and viewers.
The show eventually went on to become CBS’ most popular and highest-rated sitcom.
It also became a pop culture touchstone, and even people who have never seen the show are likely to recognize Sheldon’s “Bazinga!” catchphrase or even the show’s incredible theme song, performed by the Barenaked Ladies.
Kaley Cuoco, who played Penny, recently paid an emotional tribute to the series finale.
“A year ago today we aired our BBT series finale .. people ask me every day, was it hard to move on?” she wrote on Instagram . “Was I sad? Happy? How could I do anything else after? How would it compare?”
“Do I miss it?”
“The truth is , the show changed my life in 100 different ways and no matter where my career takes me, I will always owe it to this show and the brains behind it,” she wrote.
She finished her tribute with a pretty applicable quote.
“’Never forget where you came from, and never take your eyes off where you’re heading,’” she wrote.
It was an emotional tribute that made a lot of people miss the show and wish it hadn’t ended — a wish that could have been granted before the last season if not for one cast member’s decision.
Production designer for the show John Shaffner revealed the news in an interview with *Metro*.
Shaffner explained that the cast had found out in a not-ideal way, saying, “The news that [the show] was ending had been leaked because Warner Brothers had prepared a proper roll-out of explaining it to everybody but the cast didn’t know.”
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“Warner Brothers and CBS wanted to sign for about two more years,” he said.
“What had occurred was Jim Parsons [who played Sheldon] had been in touch with Chuck Lorre over the hiatus week and had said he couldn’t come back and do any more. And Chuck had always said if one member of the cast left the show then the show would have to end.”
Shaffner revealed that the rest of the cast took it pretty hard.
“I was back in the office and I found out about this and I went down to stage and I saw Johnny [Galecki] and Kaley [Cuoco] in the comic book store and they were just hugging each other and crying.
However, he understood why Jim did it.
“It was very hard for a while for people to accept the decision and the crew was very disappointed because it was a good job. But I really respected what Jim did. It’s better to leave on top,” he said.
While I respect that decision too, I reserve the right to be sad about it!
Fans were understandably emotional at the news.
“The big bang theory franchise didn’t have to end.. now the whole comedy industry is a bit boring,” one fan tweeted . Other fans are glad it went out on a high note, with one tweeting , “Big Bang Theory‘s season finale is one of the less season finales that was actually really good.”
What do you think?
Do you wish that the show had kept going for two more seasons, with or without Sheldon? Or are you glad that the show ended on such a high note? Let us know what you think in the comments below!