TBBT’s Penny Didn’t Appear In Two Episodes, But You Probably Didn’t Even Notice
Wait, what?
The Big Bang Theory is full of unique characters that make the show hilarious and packed with lighthearted moments. But of course, the core members of the show are Sheldon, Howard, Raj, Leonard and Penny.
They appear in every episode of the show and are always the center of attention. But as it turns out, Kaley Cuoco, despite playing one of the most important characters, actually skipped two episodes of the show during its run.
It happened in season 4, episodes 5 and 6. But there was a good reason why Penny didn't appear in those episodes. The thing is, she fell off a horse while riding and broke her leg. And when those episodes were filmed, she was still waiting for her injury to heal.
As she said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the recovery process was really long. But it was impossible to do the whole season without her. From the pilot, she was as important as the four male leads.
The only thing that helped them keep Cuoco on set was a change in the storyline of the entire season. It was the time when she and Leonard weren't dating, so that explained why she wasn't hanging out with the gang as much.
And also, the writers made some changes in her character's work. Instead of being a waitress, she became a bartender. This allowed the show to hide her injury on screen.
The fans discussed that on Reddit and realized they didn’t actually notice Penny being away.
“It’s the strangest thing. I never noticed her absence either until some time ago someone on this sub pointed it out,” Redditor CarnalOrganicAnagram said.
So The Big Bang Theory was able to hide Cuoco's injury until it was completely healed, even if it meant that one of the sitcom's most beloved characters wasn't in every episode.
Source: The Ellen DeGeneres Show