How Sarah Michelle Gellar's The Big Bang Theory Cameo Came To Be
Out of all the guys on "The Big Bang Theory," it's safe to say that Raj Koothrappali (Kunal Nayyar) is the unluckiest when it comes to women. There's Lucy (Kate Micucci), who climbs out of numerous bathroom windows to get away from him, and Lakshmi Choudry (Chriselle Almeida), who wants to use Raj to hide the fact that she's gay, just to name a few. Therefore, when he's seated next to Sarah Michelle Gellar, star of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" at the Nobel Prize ceremony of Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) and Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik), it's an exciting, albeit shocking, moment.
How, exactly, did Gellar's cameo come to be? When the show's creative team realized that Raj would be the only one flying solo for the ceremony, they decided that he needed some sort of win. Why not have him spend an entire evening with one of his celebrity crushes? Showrunner Steve Holland told TV Line, "I've been a fan of 'Buffy' for years. It's probably the show I've watched more than any other. I think a lot of our writers are fans of 'Buffy.' [Having Sarah in the finale] felt like a fun, like, deeper-reel pull that would be exciting to us and exciting to these characters."
When contacted by executive producer Chuck Lorre, Gellar, whose family members were avid "The Big Bang Theory" viewers, was instantly on board for her strictly-platonic encounter with Raj.
There's a reason why Raj's evening with Sarah Michelle Gellar isn't a date
It must be noted that, since she is playing herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar is not Raj Koothrappali's (Kunal Nayyar) date to the Nobel Prize ceremony...despite his attempts to hold her hand. Afterall, the actress has been married to her "Scooby-Doo" co-star Freddie Prinze Jr. since 2002, and likely wouldn't ditch him for an awkward astrophysicist that she met on a plane.
Still, the marital status of Gellar isn't the only reason that Raj is the only single one when "The Big Bang Theory" ends. Executive producer Bill Prady told Glamour, "Raj continuing to look for love is more satisfying to me than him finding someone neatly at the end of the series. The decision to say, 'I'm going to wait for the right person, and I believe the right person is out there,' is a really cool ending. I love that we kind of leave the characters where we've known them to be."
The series finale truly shows the character growth of Raj. Once upon a time, he was desperate for companionship, and even considered Lakshmi Choudry's (Chriselle Almeida) marriage proposal. In the end, not only does he boast more self-worth, he's able to speak to women (and invite Sarah Michelle Gellar to an event) without being intoxicated.