A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…James Earl Jones and Carrie Fisher were asked to take part in a seriously Star Wars-centric casting stunt on CBS’ incredibly popular Chuck Lorre series, The Big Bang Theory, and someone managed to get the duo to say yes. Both actors (one the voice of Darth Vader — Jones, the other Princess Leia herself) will appear as themselves in a future episode, the series’ executive producers Bill Prady and Steve Molaro told TVLine on the Golden Globes red carpet.
Geek-centric fare like this year’s Indiana Jones-themed episode are nothing new to the series format. And while there’s no word yet on what Jones and Fisher’s appearance will entail, they did let one detail slip: the duo would be crossing paths with Sheldon (Jim Parsons). No word on whether or not the storyline will involve a civil war, rebel spaceships, hidden bases, rebel spies, Death Stars, stolen planets, Galactic Empires, or starships filled with wookiees named Chewbacca. Though one can certainly hope!
The series, which is currently in its seventh season, has never been more popular. Even after hundreds of episodes, the show still manages to set records with audiences. Just last week, The Big Bang Theory brought in its largest 8PM audience ever, garnering a staggering 20.7 million viewers. To say the show is nothing to sneeze at would be an understatement.
And with ratings like that its no wonder the series’ stars are bringing in serious bank. As of their last contract negotiations, the series’ trio of main stars — Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, and Johnny Galecki — each pocket a mammoth $300,000 per episode and are reportedly holding out for the mind-bending figure of $500,000 per episode heading into the eighth season. As for the rest of the ensemble cast, their paychecks are decidedly (that’s putting it lightly) lower, at $125,000 per episode for Simon Helberg and $75,000 for Kunal Nayyar. The newer cast additions, Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch have both already signed their contracts for next season and will pocket a reported $60,000 per episode. Considering how much the series makes on advertising dollars, they can likely swing the increases.
This isn’t the first time the series has featured Star Wars on the show — as the nerdy trio are total geeks about space-specific entertainment endeavors. Just last year the show opened with a nerdy dance-off:
And who could forget the time the boys went gaga for an entire weekend of Star Wars shenanigans?
Fortunately, fans of the series won’t have to jump between galaxies for another installment of “Star Wars Stuff on The Big Bang Theory, which airs Thursdays at 8PM on CBS.
