Cuoco quotes a passage from The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series that reads, “It was evident there was always something there.”
On the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, others were attracted to each other in addition to Penny and Leonard.
In the 12-season course of the series, Kaley Cuoco and Johnny Galecki, who played the neighbours turned love interests, also had an immediate attraction to one another. In the first few seasons of the sitcom, between 2008 and 2010, the co-stars were romantically involved, and according to Cuoco, she “just had eyes” for Galecki.
In a Vanity Fair excerpt from The Strong Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series, Cuoco admits, “I had a pretty big love on Johnny early on.” “I wasn’t even trying to hide it. He has such confidence. At the time, both of us were dating, but I had my heart set on Johnny. Then, when I discovered that he had feelings for me as well, I thought, Oh no, this is going to be difficult.”
Galecki, on the other hand, was first unaware. I have a strong ego, but to let me know you’re flirting with me, you really have to kind of club me over the head, he claims. Before Kaley and I started dating, “I had no idea of any form of crush.” Still, Cuoco claims that their on-screen chemistry, which resulted in their off-screen romance, was unmistakable.
“It was evident there was always something there in all the scenarios up until we really got together in real life,” she recalls. “We had chemistry and were smitten with one another. Up until we started dating seriously, that was the first season.”
Filming “The Nerdvana Annihilation” from season 1 marked a turning point in the crush when Leonard had a dream in which he saves Penny in an elevator shaft. Because we were pulling a bit of a stunt, Galecki says, “We had to be in each other’s arms for quite a while.” It was a pre-tape because it took some time and was an entire affair.
Kaley “didn’t look at all terrified out,” he claims. She appeared to be really content in those arms, in fact. “I suppose we fell a little in love in that elevator shaft,” Cuoco continues. Says her coworker, “Yes, we felt something. That, in my opinion, marked a significant turning point in our relationship. She and I both realised at that point that we were experiencing something similar and that trying to deny it would be more time-consuming than simply acknowledging it and giving in to it.”
Later, the two (now single) shared a kiss in the bar of Burbank’s famed Smoke House Restaurant, solidifying their connection. Galecki recalls a time when the two were “hiding behind a car in the parking lot” when Chuck Lorre almost discovered their romance on filming. I can’t remember it, adds Lorre, whose memory is a little blurry. I may have compartmentalised that into “I can’t deal with this, I don’t have the mental, emotional bandwidth to deal with an on-set relationship.”
After their divorce, the two are still friendly. Cuoco refers to her marriages to Ryan Sweeting and Karl Cook by saying, “He was front row at both of my weddings, and we’ve been incredibly supportive of each other ever since.” (Last year, she and the latter were divorced.) We adore one another. We still love one another, but in different ways, says Galecki.
