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When “The Big Bang Theory” concluded in 2019, the series finale came with a few surprises for fans, not least of which was the reveal that Penny was pregnant. Penny’s relationship with Leonard had been at the heart of the series from the very beginning. Although the pair had their rocky periods, they ultimately tied the knot in a Las Vegas wedding on Season 9. When the series finale revealed that they were expecting, though, many fans were shocked –- as was Penny actress, Kaley Cuoco.
Throughout “The Big Bang Theory,” Penny made it abundantly clear that she didn’t want children. Speaking about the series finale’s switch-up in Jessica Radloff’s book “The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series,” Cuoco revealed she had been against taking Penny in this direction, feeling that Penny represented people who don’t want to have children.
“It was cute how the writers did it at the end with Penny’s surprise pregnancy, and all in all I’m glad, but I was actually voting for her not to. I loved that she was like, ‘No, I don’t really want [children],'” Cuoco said. She pointed out that Penny’s feelings were something “couples go through,” explaining that Penny validated how everyone has different life goals. “I didn’t want an episode where all of a sudden she’d say, ‘No, I want a baby!’ Because not everyone wants the life that the next person wants. Not everyone wants kids. Not everyone wants to be married. And I liked that.”
The Big Bang Theory’s showrunner reflects on Penny’s pregnancy
CBS
In the same book, Steve Holland weighed in on the decision to reveal Penny was pregnant in “The Big Bang Theory’s” finale. Holland was the series’ showrunner for its final two seasons and revealed that he also had some reservations about the way the series ended up handling Penny’s surprise pregnancy.
“I wish we had earned it a little bit more, getting to that reveal,” Holland said of the fact that Penny’s pregnancy was such a sudden U-turn for the character. “Some people called us out, and maybe rightly so, that Penny made the decision not to have kids and was OK with it, and then ended up pregnant. People were like, ‘Why does she have to? Why can’t she be okay without kids?’ And those are perfectly legitimate feelings.”
Holland also explained that the writing team had “talked about whether there were other ways to do it, like what if she had a pregnancy scare that turned out to be false and she was disappointed.” The showrunner still called the ending “a great landing place” for Penny and Leonard, though he admitted the pregnancy reveal felt too rushed, saying “I wish we had Penny take one more step before we got to the finale.”
Ultimately, Holland said he hoped Penny’s pregnancy would honor the relationship between her and Leonard throughout the series, as well as paying off Leonard’s line, “Our babies will be smart and beautiful,” from the series’ pilot episode.