Brie Larson reveals that she auditioned for The Big Bang Theory. The actress' road to stardom wasn't short and straight. She'd tried different things including dabbling in stand-up comedy and the music industry on top of honing her craft in acting before hitting it big in Hollywood. As one of the most recognizable faces in the business, she opens up about her experiences in the hopes of encouraging those who are just starting on their journeys.
The Academy Award winner and Captain Marvel actress has been acting since 1998, debuting in a comedy sketch in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Larson eventually scored her first regular acting gig in Raising Dad. She subsequently appeared in a string of big screen projects such as Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) and 21 Jump Street (2012) playing supporting roles. Her big break didn't come, however, until 2013 when she starred in the acclaimed drama, Short Term 12. Despite this, she continued taking secondary roles until her praised performance in the drama film Room (2015) earned her a Best Actress award at the Oscars. From there, she landed more high-profile gigs including the role of Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel in the MCU.
In the latest video on her YouTube channel, Larson talks about her failures - meaning the acting parts she auditioned for over the years that she didn't get. Given how long she's been in the industry, the actress has quite a long list which includes The Big Bang Theory. Larson didn't reveal anything specific about her experience to land a gig on the CBS sitcom, but she did say they turned her down because she's too young for the role.
I tested for The Big Bang Theory, I remembered that this morning. They were really sweet, they just said I was too young; it's true.
While Larson provided very limited information about her time trying out for a role in The Big Bang Theory, it's more likely that she auditioned to play Penny. Kaley Cuoco portrayed the part for 12 seasons in the long-running CBS sitcom until it wrapped up last year. Larson and Cuoco have similar physical character traits which were integral in the characterization of Penny. Both actresses also have previous sitcom experience, with Cuoco prominently portraying Bridget Erin "Beach" Hennessy opposite John Ritter's Paul Hennessy in 8 Simple Rules. It also checks out with their reasoning for passing up on Larson with Cuoco four years older than her.
The actress being too young aside, it's curious how The Big Bang Theory would've looked like if Larson nabbed the role of Penny. One of the biggest selling points of the sitcom was the chemistry among its main cast members, and Cuoco fit right in with his fellow co-stars making them so fun to watch. In any case, everything eventually worked for the better with Larson now more focused on movies, while Cuoco is thriving with her small screen projects.
Source: Brie Larson