The Big Bang Theory made being a nerd more popular and with the four lead stars, being obsessed with films and shows like Star Wars, Star Trek, Doctor Who, and more became more mainstream. The number of references to popular IPs made the show memorable and closer to fans of geekdom, and even led to cameos from the stars of these IPs.
While many actors from the Star Trek franchise have made appearances on the CBS sitcom, Wil Wheaton has had the largest role. The actor has played himself in the series and has appeared on the show multiple times. When asked about his favorite moments from the series, he recounted an improvised scene that left the cast and crew in stitches.
Wil Wheaton’s Star Trek Reference In The Big Bang Theory Episode Had The Crew In Splits
While he was young when he played Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Wil Wheaton became a memorable character in his 30s in The Big Bang Theory. Playing an exaggerated version of himself, Wheaton appeared in a number of episodes since debuting in season 3 and had an arc as the nemesis of Jim Parsons’ Sheldon Cooper.
Being an actor on Star Trek and part of the TBBT gang put Wheaton in a great place as he could constantly get close to the main stars. The actor ran into the gang many times, with his feud against Sheldon forming most of the storyline. He even showed up in an episode of the last season, completing their arc and resolving their feud.
When asked about some of his favorite memories on the set of The Big Bang Theory, Wheaton recounted an improvised scene in season 9. As the gang goes to the Star Wars premiere, Wheaton shows up in a Star Trek costume and reportedly says, “Live long and suck it” to the crowd who boo him.
According to Wheaton, the cast and crew were unaware of his appearance and their reactions were genuine. He said to Express UK,
So I come out and the explosion of like pants-s******g laughter that comes out in that moment was genuine and it came from the entire cast and crew. When you can make the crew laugh. When you can kill the crew on a sitcom, it feels really, really, really good. It’s like hitting a home run.
The actor also mentioned that his final appearance in the series was also a memorable moment for him.
Wil Wheaton Initially Wanted To Play A Different Character in The Big Bang Theory
Jim Parson’s Sheldon Cooper and the gang have expressed their love for Star Trek on multiple occasions. Many of the franchise’s actors, including Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner, have appeared in the show. However, it was TNG’s Wil Wheaton who became part of the The Big Bang Theory family after his cameo in season 3.
However, Wheaton’s journey in the series would have been different had he not trusted series co-creator Bill Prady’s vision for the show. When the showrunner reportedly approached him with the offer, Wheaton apparently urged him to give him a character. He said to Express UK,
I wanted to play a character because I felt that playing a character had more legs and was a little bit more of a challenge, and would give me an opportunity maybe to become sort of a minor cast member on the show.
The actor mentioned that he felt like playing himself would be cheating. However, Prady finally convinced him and the rest is history.
The Big Bang Theory is available to stream on Max.
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