Spoilers for Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Season 1.
Stuart Fails to Save the Universe has surprised us with the number of actors from The Big Bang Theory who return in the HBO spin-off. Thanks to the other titles in the franchise, there are already several shared characters in The Big Bang Theory universe, and now, there are even more. The franchise’s move from a typical situational comedy to an adventurous sci-fi has allowed for all manner of interesting twists and turns, and the Stuart spin-off’s character returns are some of the biggest.
Other than the main cast: Kevin Sussman as Stuart, Lauren Lapkus as Denise, John Ross Bowie as Kripke, and Brian Posehn as Bert, many actors from The Big Bang Theory franchise have also taken the time to make an appearance in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe. However, not all of them are necessarily playing the same character, and if they are, they’re rather different from the ones we know and love.
Kunal Nayyar
The first character return in TBBT‘s Stuart spin-off is Kunal Nayyar as Raj Koothrappali, who makes a sudden appearance in Episode 1. Now living in Bert’s old classroom, a down-on-his-luck Raj reveals that he married after the events of The Big Bang Theory finale, but his marriage was short-lived. Raj doesn’t last for very long in the first installment of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, but he appears again in Episode 6, where Denise and Stuart find him ranting in the street about the end of the world.
Kaley Cuoco
Kaley Cuoco’s return as Penny is even more exciting than Raj’s. We see Penny twice in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe: the first in Episode 2 as the leader of a rebellion hell-bent on stopping the giant AI crystal in the sky, and the second in Episode 8 as an army major. Both times we see Penny involves her questioning the gang about the strange multiverse device, proving that even in worlds where she’s not with Leonard, she’s still drawn to the sci-fi nonsense he loves.
Brian Thomas Smith
Brian Thomas Smith also reprises his role as Zack Johnson in Episode 2 of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe. The return of Penny’s less-than-bright yet sweet ex is one none of us saw coming, but it’s fun to think that, in some universes, if Penny isn’t with Leonard, she’s at least with someone who genuinely cares about her. In this universe, though, Zack isn’t too different from the one we know from The Big Bang Theory, although his lack of intelligence hasn’t stopped him from assisting Penny with her rebel empire.
Melissa Rauch
Melissa Rauch returns as Bernadette on two occasions, and both times she plays a very different version of the character. Episode 3 of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe sees Bernadette as a sneaky and manipulative sorceress who tricks Stuart into giving her his blood to help regain her powers.
We also learn a bit more about Bernadette’s pageant backstory in Episode 7, where, this time, she is a brutally strict dance teacher. While it would’ve been great to see the actual Bernadette we know and love, these are still fun ways to reunite us with the character.
Mayim Bialik
Mayim Bialik reprises her role as Amy in two installments of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, and unlike Bernadette (the first time) or Raj, she doesn’t recognize Stuart and the gang. We’re first reunited with her in Episode 4, where we discover that she’s a therapist in this universe, supporting Stuart through his “mental breakdown.” We then discover TBBT has replaced Sheldon in Episode 9 of the spin-off when Amy returns, this time married to Jay Garrick, also known as the Golden Age Flash. Each parallel version of the various characters differs from their original counterpart, but Amy more than most.
Riki Lindhome
Riki Lindhome appears a total of three times in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe as Ramona Nowitzki: Episodes 2, 7, and 9. Although Ramona isn’t a love-struck and obsessive student/scientist in this spin-off, she still offers plenty of hilarious moments. Ramona may not be getting in the way of Sheldon’s personal life anymore, but she’s certainly determined to get in the gang’s way of finding him, Howard, and Leonard, the only people who can help Stuart with the multiverse device in order to save the universe.
Josh Brener
If you’re not a big watcher of The Big Bang Theory, you might not realize that Josh Brener was also in the parent show. Brener portrays Trevor in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, one of Stuart’s recurring comic book store customers, who has several comical fates throughout the spin-off. Brener also portrayed Dale in The Big Bang Theory, a friend of Stuart’s and briefly a part-time employee of the comic book store, who only appeared in the original show on two occasions.
Ryan Cartwright
The other half of the Trevor-Kyle duo, Ryan Cartwright is another actor from The Big Bang Theory who also stars in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe. Cartwright plays Kyle in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, but before that, he portrayed Cole in The Big Bang Theory. Cole only appeared in one episode of the original show, a British student from Penny’s community college course, who had quite the run-in with a jealous Leonard at one point.
Teller
No, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe isn’t a high fantasy TV show (although Episode 3 may have you thinking otherwise), but it does feature some legendary performers from the world of magic. Teller, the mute half of the magic duo Penn & Teller, makes a fun cameo in Episode 1 of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, with the pair trying to make ends meet in this dark, apocalyptic world. Teller also played Amy’s father, Larry Fowler, in The Big Bang Theory, and he and Penn also portrayed a representation of Sheldon’s zit in Young Sheldon, but in the Stuart spin-off, both magicians play themselves.
Christine Baranski
Emmy Award nominee and winner Christine Baranski also returns in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, but not as Leonard’s mother. Baranski was nominated for an Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Primetime Emmy for her performance as Beverly Hofstadter in The Big Bang Theory in 2009, but in the Stuart spin-off, she makes a cameo as herself. It’s not exactly clear why this is, but there’s no denying that the way Baranski provides the intro for the training video in Episode 2 sounds like something Beverly would do.
