Warner Bros. Discovery streamer HBO Max‘s first order of business after officially changing its name is to officially order to series The Big Bang Theory spinoff Stuart Fails To Save The Universe starring the mothership series’ Kevin Sussman, Lauren Lapkus, Brian Posehn and John Ross Bowie.The Big Bang Theory co-creator and franchise steward Chuck Lorre, who executive produces the latest offshoot with fellow Big Bang co-creator Bill Prady and The Avengers’ Zak Penn, recently revealed that SFTSTU “is trying to incorporate some of the world of science fiction, fantasy into a comedy” and will feature extensive CGI.The pickup announcement expands on that with a detailed description of the premise which evokes superhero movie mythology while opening the door for other original Big Bang cast members to reprise their roles — sort of — in what Prady calls “a complex science fiction story.”SFTSTU is set in the future, after the events in Big Bang. In it, comic book store owner Stuart Bloom (Sussman) is tasked with restoring reality after he breaks a device built by Sheldon and Leonard, accidentally bringing about a multiverse Armageddon. (The contraption is something Sheldon and Leonard worked on after the end of the original series.)Stuart is aided in this quest by his girlfriend Denise (Lapkus), geologist friend Bert (Posehn), and quantum physicist/all-around pain in the ass Barry Kripke (Bowie). Along the way, they meet alternate-universe versions of characters we’ve come to know and love from The Big Bang Theory. As the title implies, things don’t go well.Like has been the case in superhero franchises, Big Bang actors are expected to play alternate-universe versions of characters. No details on who may be returning are being revealed, but given that their characters made the device whose destruction unleashed chaos, it is safe to assume that Jim Parsons and Johnny Galecki may pop in as Sheldon and Leonard, respectively.“We’re excited to be continuing the legacy of The Big Bang Theory,” Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO, HBO and HBO Max Content, said. “Much like the original series, this new chapter wouldn’t be possible without the vision and storytelling brilliance of Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, as well as Zak Penn, who has brought fresh insight and a distinctive voice to an already exceptional creative team.”Lorre addressed SFTSTU leaning heavily into sci-fi, which is new to him.“I wanted to do something radical that would take me out of my comfort zone,” he said. “Something the characters on The Big Bang Theory, would have loved, hated, and argued about.”The pickup caps a long journey for the project, which was first announced in April 2023 with no premise and a single auspice, Lorre, via Big Bang studio Warner Bros. Television where his Chuck Lorre Prods. is based.During the comedy’s more than two years in development at the studio, Lorre went on to recruit Prady and Penn as co-writers/executive producers, and Big Bang alums Sussman, Lapkus, Posehn and Bowie were signed into talent holding deals with Warner Bros. TV with the purpose of starring in the spinoff once it’s picked up. By March this year, the spinoff had a title, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe.“The process of writing this show with Chuck and Zak has been damn fun, and I’m certain that joy will come through the screen,” Prady said. “Putting characters we loved from The Big Bang Theory into a complex science fiction story with the kind of mythology that those characters love while maintaining the comedic elements is incredibly satisfying.”The sci-fi and mythology element explains the recruitment of Penn, who has experience in genre world building through his work on such movies as The Avengers, Ready Player One and Free Guy, to co-write the project with Lorre and Prady. Reacting to the series order, Penn recalled the initial pitch for the show.“I was on a vision quest in the most remote parts of the Amazon Rainforest when a carrier pigeon arrived with a note from Chuck Lorre asking if I wanted to help make a show that the characters from Big Bang Theory would watch,” Penn said. “I couldn’t resist that idea, so I packed up my yurt and hailed the next dirigible out. At the same time, Chuck sent an expedition to locate Bill Prady, who had been frozen with his shield across his chest in a block of arctic ice. The team assembled, we set out to make this insane show, which lives in a universe created by Chuck and Bill. I couldn’t be more honored to be working with these amazing people.”With SFTSTU heating up for a greenlight this spring, Lorre in March set up an informal table read with the lead quartet to workshop two scripts for a final polish before they were submitted to HBO Max for series pickup consideration. Lorre revealed last month that 10 scripts have been written.“Chuck and Bill have given us one of the most enduring comedies of our time with The Big Bang Theory, and we can’t wait to see the universe continue with this new series,” said Channing Dungey, Chairman and CEO, Warner Bros. Television Group and Warner Bros. Discovery US Networks. “With the help of Zak — a masterful storyteller — this next iteration promises to capture the essence of what fans loved about the original series, but with a completely fresh twist. We thank our partners HBO Max for joining us on this next adventure.”Stuart Fails to Save the Universe hails from Chuck Lorre Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television, with Lorre, Penn and Prady executive producing. Like the rest of the series in the Big Bang franchise, it will be filmed in Los Angeles.
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