Although I was initially worried thatThe Big Bang Theory’s next spinoffStuart Fails to Save the Universewould simply be a straightforward sequel to the original show, its synopsis has completely disproven this hypothesis. WhenThe Big Bang Theorycreator Chuck Lorre announced the show’s upcoming spinoffStuart Fails to Save the Universe, skepticism was understandable.

AfterThe Big Bang Theory’s finale, the sitcom franchise continued with the prequelYoung Sheldon, which was then followed by its own direct sequelGeorgie & Mandy’s First Marriage.Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriageexpanded onYoung Sheldon’s world, but it was still very much a straightforward follow-up to a show that was already a prequel to another, earlier show.

As such, when readers learned thatStuart Fails to Save the Universewould bring backThe Big Bang Theory’s supporting stars Stuart, Denise, Kripke, and Bert, it was fair to fear the series would be a mere continuation of the original show. The spinoffturning intoThe Big Bang Theoryseason 13was a concern I wrote about early on, but the synopsis recently released by HBOMax (viaVariety) completely disproves this fear:

“Comic book store owner Stuart Bloom (Kevin Sussman) is tasked with restoring reality after he breaks a device built by Sheldon and Leonard, accidentally bringing about a multiverse Armageddon. Stuart is aided in this quest by his girlfriend Denise (Lauren Lapkus), geologist friend Bert (Brian Posehn), and quantum physicist/all-around pain in the ass Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie). Along the way, they meet alternate-universe versions of characters we’ve come to know and love fromThe Big Bang Theory. As the title implies, things don’t go well.”

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe’s Ambitious Sci-fi Premise Proves The Spinoff Is No The Big Bang Theory Sequel

The Synopsis Diverges Wildly From The Sitcom Franchise’s Original Premise

WhileThe Big Bang Theorywas a fairly ordinary hang-out show that followed the formula perfected byFriends,Seinfeld, and How I Met Your Mother, among others,Stuart Fails to Save the Universe’s ambitious premise makes the show a major departure for the sitcom franchise. After all, if there is one word that describesThe Big Bang Theory’s style, it is traditional.

The Big Bang Theorywas one of few sitcoms in the ‘00s and 2010s that still utilized a laugh track, and the show largely avoided the storytelling tricks that were common in its network sitcom competitors.Communityand30 Rockwere endlessly ambitious and experimental, but even the era’s other major hang-out show,How I Met Your Mother, constantly messed with its audience.

The Big Bang Theoryis available to stream on Hulu.

Ted’s unreliable narration, the show’s shifting timelines, its changing histories, and its bizarre episodes told entirely in verse or backwards provedHow I Met Your Motherwas as invested in deconstructing sitcom norms as maintaining them. In contrast, outside of having characters stereotypically deemed nerdy as its protagonists,The Big Bang Theorywas a much more conventional hit sitcom.

Even thedivisive twist inThe Big Bang Theory’s finalefit this mold, as the show revealed Penny’s pregnancy after over a decade of her adamantly declaring she didn’t want children. Although this trait made Penny an unusual, interesting character, it diverged from sitcom norms and was therefore retconned hastily in the finale.

In contrast with its pointedly unambitious hang-out predecessor, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe will be a wild sci-fi series set across the multiverse, with different versions of its characters and entire new realities.

The Big Bang Theoryprized reliable tropes and well-worn structure over experimentation, which makesStuart Fails to Save the Universeall the more surprising. In contrast with its pointedly unambitious hang-out predecessor,Stuart Fails to Save the Universewill be a wild sci-fi series set across the multiverse, with different versions of its characters and entire new realities.

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Will Change The Entire Big Bang Theory Universe (Literally)

Most Returning Characters Will Be New Versions of Themselves

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe’s premise makes the show atypically ambitious for any type of TV show, but the conceit is notably daring when compared to the rest ofThe Big Bang Theoryfranchise’s output. WhileThe Big Bang Theorywas modeled on many successful hang-out shows that came before it, its prequel,Young Sheldon, borrowed from nostalgic family sitcoms.

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BeforeYoung Sheldonarrived, shows likeThe Wonder Years,Malcolm in the Middle, andThe Goldbergsall showed that its structure and storyline had already proven popular. Similarly,Young Sheldon’s spinoffGeorgie & Mandy’s First Marriagewas a sitcom focused on two stressed parents in a troubled marriage who were struggling to raise a child and pay the bills.

That synopsis could describe any of the dozens of sitcoms from the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s, so viewers knew what they were getting withGeorgie & Mandy’s First Marriagedespite its occasional subversive elements. Georgie and Mandy’s age gap was notable, as was the early revelation that their relationship failed, but the show still stuck to a reliable formula.

In contrast,Stuart Fails to Save the Universeis doing more than just offering viewers a storyline unlike any earlier sitcom. The show is also ensuring that it can’t possibly feel like an extension ofThe Big Bang Theory, since the franchise’s original universe is going to be destroyed in the spinoff. Even existing characters who return won’t be the same.

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe’s Plan Is Still Extremely Risky

Creator Chuck Lorre Admitted He Has Never Worked On Anything Like The Spinoff

It is exciting and promising to see thatStuart Fails to Save the Universeis more than a mere excuse tobring backThe Big Bang Theorycharactersand offer a soft reboot of the earlier show. That said, there is no avoiding the realitythatStuart Fails to Save the Universecould be a colossal failure upon release.

The show’s premise blends two genres, high-concept sci-fi, and the hang-out sitcom, that seem inherently at odds with each other. The most successful blends of these divergent formats are usually found in the world of animation, where hits likeFuturamaandRick and Mortycan visualize ambitious, immersive futures and alien worlds without massively inflating their budget.

Starting out withRoseanne, Lorre spent his career fine-tuning network sitcoms with hits likeThe Big Bang Theory,Mom, andDharma and Greg.

Indeed, Lorre told an audience at the Banff World Media Festival 2025 thatStuart Fails to Save the Universeinvolved “A lot of CGI” and admitted that he was “Completely” out of his element in this regard. Starting out withRoseanne, Lorre spent his career fine-tuning network sitcoms with hits likeThe Big Bang Theory,Mom, andDharma and Greg.

However, none of Lorre’s reliable sitcom formats necessarily work when transferred to the world of ambitious sci-fi, meaningStuart Fails to Save the Universe’s multiverse concept may end up biting off more than it can chew. FromLeonard and Penny’sThe Big Bang Theoryrelationshipto Georgie and Mandy’s titular marriage, the sitcom franchise has mostly focused on small-scale relationship drama so far.

Switching to a sci-fi story where the fabric of reality itself is at stake seems like a strikingly strange choice and one that could jar with the more modest ambitions of the sitcom franchise’s previous outings. That said,Stuart Fails to Save the Universemay also becomeThe Big Bang Theoryuniverse’s most rewarding show thanks to this daring twist on a familiar formula.