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This article is about the television sitcom. For the cosmological model, see Big Bang. For other uses, see Big Bang Theory (disambiguation).

The Big Bang Theory
Genre	Sitcom[1]
Created by	Chuck Lorre Bill Prady
Directed by	Mark Cendrowski
Starring	Johnny Galecki Jim Parsons Kaley Cuoco Simon Helberg Kunal Nayyar Sara Gilbert Melissa Rauch Mayim Bialik Kevin Sussman[2]
Theme music composer	Barenaked Ladies
Opening theme	"Big Bang Theory Theme"[3][4]
Country of origin	United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	6
No. of episodes	119 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Chuck Lorre Bill Prady Steven Molaro
Producer(s)	Faye Oshima Belyeu
Editor(s)	Peter Chakos
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	18–22 minutes (without commercials)
Production company(s)	Chuck Lorre Productions Warner Bros. Television
Broadcast
Original channel	CBS
Picture format	1080i (HDTV)
Audio format	DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Original run	September 24, 2007 – present
External links
Website

The Big Bang Theory is an American sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom serve as executive producers on the show, along with Steven Molaro. All three also serve as head writers. It premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007.^[5]
The show is centered on five characters: roommates Leonard Hofstadter and Sheldon Cooper, two physicists employed at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech); Penny, a waitress and aspiring actress who lives across the hall; and Leonard and Sheldon's equally geeky and socially awkward friends and co-workers, aerospace engineer Howard Wolowitz and astrophysicist Rajesh Koothrappali. The geekiness and intellect of the four guys is contrasted for comic effect with Penny's social skills and common sense.^[6][7] Over time, supporting characters have been promoted to starring roles: Leslie Winkle, a physicist colleague at Caltech and, at different times, a lover of both Leonard and Howard; Bernadette Rostenkowski, Howard's fiancée (later his wife), a microbiologist and former part-time waitress alongside Penny; Stuart Bloom, the cash-strapped owner of the comic book store the characters often visit, and neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler, who joins the group after surreptitiously being matched to Sheldon on a dating website.
The show, which is filmed in front of a live audience, is produced by Warner Bros. Television and Chuck Lorre Productions.^[8] In August 2009, the sitcom won the best comedy series TCA award and Jim Parsons (Sheldon) won the award for individual achievement in comedy.^[9] In 2010, the show won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy, while Parsons won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.^[10] On January 16, 2011, Parsons was awarded a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical, an award that was presented by co-star Kaley Cuoco. On September 18, 2011, Parsons was again awarded an Emmy for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.
When the third season premiered on September 21, 2009, The Big Bang Theory ranked as CBS's highest-rated show of that evening in the adults 18–49 demographic (4.6/10) along with a then-series-high 12.83 million viewers.^[11] CBS moved the show to Thursdays at 8:00 ET for the 2010–2011 schedule. On January 12, 2011, CBS announced that the show had been renewed for an additional three years, extending it through the 2013–2014 season.^[12]