Stuart Bloom is officially getting his own show. After spending years in development, Warner Bros. Discovery has finally given a series order to the Big Bang Theory spin-off, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, making it the first new show to get the green light under the new HBO Max era. With writing from original series scribes Chuck Lorre, Bill Prady, and Zak Penn, the show will feature the return of Kevin Sussman as the woefully unfortunate comic book store owner on a new adventure with a familiar, yet unexplored, cast of characters. Along with the announcement of the order, we also finally received details about the show’s premise and how it relates to the mothership series that started it all.
Compared to the main series and its two prequel spin-offs, Young Sheldon and Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe will be far less grounded. According to the official logline, the series will take place in the future, where Stuart accidentally brings about a multiversal armageddon after breaking a device Sheldon (Jim Parsons) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki) were working on in the Big Bang finale. He’s thrust into the role of an unlikely hero, setting out to save reality with some help from his girlfriend Denise, his geologist friend Bert, and Sheldon’s annoying quantum physicist rival, Barry Kripke. During their quest, they’ll also encounter strange new versions of characters from the original series from other timelines, which all but confirms that viewers will see old favorite cast members like never before.
For now, the only cast members who are confirmed are Sussman as Stuart, Lauren Lapkus as Denise, Brian Posehn as Bert, and John Ross Bowie as Kripke. However, the premise alone makes an appearance by Parsons and Galecki, at least, feel very likely. As Warner Bros. Television chief Channing Dungey previously said, though, SFTSTU belongs to Sussman and company first and foremost. Lorre, Prady, and Penn will all serve as executive producers, with Lorre hinting at a more sci-fi, CGI-heavy story for Stuart and company. “I wanted to do something radical that would take me out of my comfort zone. Something the characters on The Big Bang Theory would have loved, hated, and argued about.”
‘Stuart Fails to Save the Universe’ Will Be a Show the ‘Big Bang’ Characters Would’ve Loved
Lorre has been working on the concept of the bonkers Stuart-centric spin-off since 2023, and now, it’s closer than ever to being realized. The cast has already been through their first table read together, and with the series order, things should start moving quickly. For the creators, it’s also been a blast to reunite once more on the franchise they helped create. In his statement, Prady echoed Lorre’s sentiment about making a comedic multiversal sci-fi show fitting the interests of Big Bang’s band of nerds and shoving their friends, colleagues, and rivals into the starring roles. “The process of writing this show with Chuck and Zak has been damn fun, and I’m certain that joy will come through the screen,” he said. “Putting characters we loved from ‘The Big Bang Theory’ into a complex science fiction story with the kind of mythology that those characters love while maintaining the comedic elements is incredibly satisfying.”
Stuart Fails to Save the Universe is still in the early stages at HBO Max. Stay tuned here at Collider for more now that it has officially been greenlit.
