What Happened To Amanda Walsh Who Played The Original Penny In The Unaired Big Bang Theory Pilot?

Posted by Zora Stowers on Monday, April 8, 2024

Highlights

  • The Big Bang Theory's original pilot did not paintings because audiences hated the original Penny.
  • Amanda Walsh's original Penny (AKA "Katie") persona used to be misconceived, leading to her eventual firing from the display.
  • After being let cross from The Big Bang Theory, Walsh found good fortune in different roles.

By the time The Big Bang Theory ended, the display's stars had all grow to be the world over famous. On peak of that, The Big Bang Theory made the show's cast very rich and so they reportedly became friends in real life as neatly.

Given the entirety The Big Bang Theory did for its cast, it's superb to suppose that Kaley Cuoco nearly did not get to famous person in the show. The explanation why for that may be a Canadian actor named Amanda Walsh was going to painting the display's feminine lead as a substitute. While it's unfortunate for Walsh that she got fired from The Big Bang Theory, she has been very busy since then.

Why Was The Big Bang Theory's Pilot Unaired?

By the year 2007, Chuck Lorre had already grow to be extremely a success in the television industry. The explanation why for that's Lorre had both co-created or been the showrunner for sitcoms like Grace Under Fire, Cybill, Dharma & Greg, in addition to Two and a Half Men.

Given Lorre's pedigree, it is sensible that CBS used to be willing to guess on Lorre's latest thought for a show, The Big Bang Theory. After getting the money to produce a pilot, it initially seemed like CBS' religion in Lorre could have been misplaced.

In 2022, Lorre and his The Big Bang Theory co-creator Bill Prady have been interviewed via Entertainment Weekly. During the resulting conversation, Lorre and Prady printed that The Big Bang Theory's original pilot didn't work because audiences hated one character.

As Prady defined, "In the first pilot, the female character (who, at that point, was named Katie) is kind of rough. She's dangerous in a way and wasn't very nice to the guys. I remember going to the test screening, the dial testing..."

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At that point, Lorre interrupted to say, "Yeah, the audience hated her." In reaction to Lorre, Prady utterly echoed his co-creator's sentiments and then defined what the show had going for it. "They hated her, but what was amazing was that they were defending Leonard and Sheldon so much."

For maximum The Big Bang Theory enthusiasts, a personality named Katie isn't going to ring any bells. However, the personality Katie was once meant to cling the place in the display's cast that Penny ultimately took up. According to Lorre and Prady, there used to be an excessively particular drawback with the character Katie. As Lorre defined to Entertainment Weekly, Katie used to be too imply to Leonard and Sheldon.

"Yeah, we didn't realize early on that the audience viewed them as children. They were very naive and childlike, regardless of how intelligent they were. They were very vulnerable, and the audience didn't want a toxic presence around them."

Lorre continued, "That's why we rewrote Katie to become Penny [Kaley Cuoco] and made her much more charmed by the guys and kind to them, as opposed to a woman who would take advantage of them."

When the interviewer requested The Big Bang Theory's co-creators about who portrayed Katie, they named and praised the actor.

First, Prady mentioned, "The actress was Amanda Walsh, and she did a great job playing that character." Lorre totally agreed with Prady and placed the blame on themselves for Katie not working as a character. "She was terrific in the role, but the role was misconceived. It was our responsibility."

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As Prady went on to provide an explanation for, Walsh auditioned to painting Penny once the persona used to be reconceived. Unfortunately for Walsh, however, according to Prady's remarks to Entertainment Weekly, she by no means actually had an opportunity.

"Yeah, she was actually a very sweet person, and it was a lot of work for her to become that rough character. Afterward, she wanted to come back in for the new version of Penny, but she had been so identified as that first character that it wasn't able to happen."

What Happened To Amanda Walsh After She Was Fired From The Big Bang Theory?

In 2022, Jessica Radloff's e book The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story Of The Epic Hit Series was once printed. When Radloff used to be running on her e-book, she spoke to Amanda Walsh about being fired from The Big Bang Theory. During that conversation, Walsh explained how it felt to find out the show was once going to happen without her.

"I found out that Big Bang Theory wasn’t getting picked up, either, but it was going to be retooled—except with a new character, without me. It’s never a call you wanna get as an actor, but Bill was as nice as possible about the whole thing." As Walsh went on to provide an explanation for, the director of the pilot, James Burrows, cast her in every other position which helped her really feel higher.

"I was really fortunate that a year later, Burrows hired me for another pilot called The Mastersons of Manhattan with Molly Shannon and Natasha Richardson. For me, that really validated the notion of 'It’s not you,' because as an actor, you always question that."

Walsh persisted, "So, to get rehired by the same people for another big project was very, very validating. And I’ve been brought in for other projects of Chuck’s, and Nikki and Ken have always said that Chuck is a fan [of mine], which helps a lot.”

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Fortunately for Walsh, being hired by Burrows is far from the only role she got after TBBT. Most notably, Walsh got recurring roles in the shows Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency and Sons & Daughters as well as movies like Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.

In addition to continuing to act, Walsh's entertainment career took a surprising turn. Walsh labored in the back of the scenes on the cherished sitcom Schitt's Creek as she wrote an episode and extensively served as a tale editor on the show.

Thanks to the whole thing Walsh has achieved in her occupation, she has collected an outstanding fortune. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Walsh has a $3 million fortune as of this writing.

In terms of Walsh's private life, she appears to have found love. According to Whos Dated Who, Walsh has been in a long-term relationship with Robert Baker since 2012.

However, it seems likely that Walsh and Baker actually are married. The reason that appears to be the case is based on a photo that Walsh shared of herself and Baker on Instagram. In the image, Walsh appears to be wearing a wedding get dressed and Baker has a suit or tuxedo on.

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