Bazinga?
More like BOO-zinga.
CBS announced on Wednesday afternoon that The Big Bang Theory will conclude its historic run in 2019, wrapping up for good at the end of Season 12.
At that point, the Emmy-nominated comedy series will have aired 279 episodes and will bow out as the longest-running multi-camera sitcom in television history.
That’s far from shabby.
In a joint statement issued via press release, Warner Bros. Television, CBS and Chuck Lorre Productions said the following today:
“We are forever grateful to our fans for their support of The Big Bang Theory during the past twelve seasons.
“We, along with the cast, writers and crew, are extremely appreciative of the show’s success and aim to deliver a final season, and series finale, that will bring The Big Bang Theory to an epic creative close.”
The final season of The Big Bang Theory will premiere on Monday, September 24 (8/7c) on CBS prior to moving to its regular time period on Thursday, September 27 (8/7c).
The series finale will likely air some time in May of 2019.
The Big Bang Theory debuted in 2007 and airs in syndication around the globe.
It has received 52 Emmy Awaeds nominations, with 10 wins to date, although it has never won for Outstanding Comedy Series.
Ratings continue to be strong for the program, but costs have risen significantly since its inception.
In 2017, stars Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar signed new contracts, with each reportedly making around $ 1 million per episode.
After all this time on the air, the main cast members have acknowledged of late that the end could be arriving soon.
“The only manner in which the cast has discussed wrapping [The Big Bang Theory] has been that we’re all going to be very sad when that day comes,” Galecki said in January, adding at the time:
“But I think at this point everyone’s very comfortable with 12 seasons being a good time to go home and see our families.”
Cuoco also addressed the possibility of the program coming to a conclusion in March at Paleyfest, when she said:
“I can’t really picture it. And I don’t think there really will be my life without it – I think it’ll always be there, I think it’ll always be running.
“I think we’ll always have those fans. It’s always going to be a part of me.”
A series about science and technology, The Big Bang Theory has had a cultural impact like few other shows before.
To wit:
A bee species (Euglossa bazinga), a jellyfish species (Bazinga Rieki) and a monkey at the Columbus Zoo (Dr. Sheldon Cooper) have all been named in the show’s honor.
In 2015, meanwhile, The Big Bang Theory Scholarship was actually created at UCLA.
It supports undergraduate students in need of financial aid who are pursuing their higher education Endowment, was established to in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
Pretty cool, no?
The show has also produced a prequel/spin-off, Young Sheldon, which CBS counted last season among its top first-year hits.
Will you miss The Big Bang Theory?
Or is the time right for its cancelation?
