Whatever Happened To Barry Kripke From The Big Bang Theory?
CBS' "The Big Bang Theory" took a different approach to sitcoms by focusing on socially awkward, pop-culture-obsessed geeks Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons), Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki), Howard Wolowitz (Simon Helberg), and Raj Koothrappali (Kunal Nayyar). Though the geeky fab four were mostly unsuccessful in romance and their love of fandoms was often offputting, they were all geniuses, incredibly skilled, and highly knowledgeable in their scientific disciplines. Being researchers working at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), they were not the only brilliant minds the audience would come across.
Throughout the series, Sheldon's militant and arrogant attitude puts him at odds with several people. Most fans will remember his famous rivalry-turned-friendship with "Star Trek: The Next Generation" actor Wil Wheaton (who plays himself), but Sheldon also matches wits with another scientist as Caltech.
Introduced in Season 2, Dr. Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie) was one of Sheldon's frenemies that would often crack jokes and pull pranks at Sheldon's expense. Though he was mostly a capable and brilliant scientist in his own right, Kripke is a lazy degenerate who often boasts about his love for strippers and inappropriately hits on women. And often played up for laughs, Kripke's defining feature is his severe case of rhotacism, which manifests in him erroneously pronouncing all "R" and "L" sounds as a "W."
As the show progressed, Kripke's role in the series became less prominent, with his last appearance in the show being the penultimate episode, Season 12's "The Change Constant," where Kripke plays his last ruse and fools Sheldon into believing he had won the Nobel Prize.
After the show ended in 2019, what happened to Kripke's actor, John Ross Bowie?
Kripke's actor played roles in Speechless and Big Bang Theory concurrently
During the "Big Bang Theory"'s run, John Ross Bowie was cast in the ABC sitcom "Speechless." The series follows the DiMeo family as they find a school to accommodate their son, JJ, who suffers from cerebral palsy. JJ is confined to a wheelchair and is nonverbal, communicating using a laser pointer attached to headgear that allows him to dictate words and letters on a board. Armed with a means of communication, JJ utilizes a biting sense of humor to speak to those around him. Bowie plays Jimmy DiMeo, the easy-going patriarch of the family, who's just looking to support his family and coast through life with minimal effort. However, despite this façade, Jimmy works to instill the value of family in his kids.
"Speechless" aired in 2016 and ran concurrently with "The Big Bang Theory," with Bowie playing both roles simultaneously, which likely was a factor in Kripke's diminished presence. Though the series garnered critical acclaim, it was canceled after Season 3 due to low ratings. Following "Speechless" and "The Big Bang Theory," Bowie would star in several shorts and played one-off roles in various TV shows, before landing a role in the Dwayne Johnson-led "Jumanji: The Next Level."
Starting in 2021, Bowie started cropping up more regularly, with stints in several TV series including a reunion with Chuck Lorre, the creator of "The Big Bang Theory," when he played Brett on "United States of Al," a Chuck Lorre production. Unfortunately, the series was canceled in May 2022.
Earlier in Bowie's career, he guested on a few episodes of the satirical comedy "Reno 911!" In 2022, Bowie reunited with his former castmates in the TV movie "Reno 911!: It's a Wonderful Heist," which premiered on Comedy Central.