'Big Bang Theory' Fires Up Comic-Con

Chris Hardwick pulled double duty with "The Big Bang Theory" panel, as the King of the Nerd Herd led the primetime heroes of geekdom for their fourth outing to Comic-Con. But Hardwick went far back with a few of the castmembers.

Here are a few snippets from the Q&A:

 

Are you tired of making hit shows?

 "'No," said creator Chuck Lorre.

"We were not doing a show about nerd culture. We were doing a show about people we liked," said Bill Prady. "As members of a certain group, sometimes we don't see ourselves depicted on screen. We wanted to remedy that."

"It's about extraordinary people," said Lorre.

What was it like when you first got the script?

"I really wanted to say these words they wrote for Sheldon. I don't know a good show when I see it, but I did want to say these lines and I thought if I could learn them, I could do it to their liking. And they did. And they hired me," said Jim Parsons.

Do you think Sheldon lacks emotion?

"I didn't try to make him sympathetic, but I felt empathy for him," said Parsons. "I never suspected that he lacked emotion, but that this was just his way of dealing. It is what it is, and he's a lovely fellow."

Penny really digs nerds, doesn't she?

"Kaley digs nerds too," said Kaley Cuoco. "It's been an unbelievable ride. When we all did the pilot, I think we all knew we were doing something special. We're just riding this wave for as long as they'll let us."

How did you get roped into this?

"I was doing a play in N.Y. and Chuck called me. we had worked together on 'Roseanne.' He faxed me a couple pages a few keeps later. You would be a complete fool to not trust Chuck Lorre when he says it's a good project. But it wasn't until the table read that I knew we would be working on this for a long time," said Johnny Galecki.

Are you guys going to headbutt each other over your dual Emmy nominations?

"That's not the working relationship we have. I don't headbutt," said Parsons.

Does the show allow for improv?

"How can we make up those lines? That would be insane. We need to memorize them. We lean on the writers," said Simon Helberg.

"I started in stand-up in NY, but I came out here to pursue stuff like this. I don't do stand-up anymore. Just Walowitz impressions," said Melissa Rauch.

Are you really a doctor?

"I fell in love with biology when I was working on 'Blossom." I did my undergrad in neuroscience. I loved academia and what I was studying. And that's why many of us get a PhD, because we love what we do and we don't want to join the real world."

I was told they need a female Jim Parsons, and I was like, 'Who is Jim Parsons.' I put that I had a PhD on my resume under misc. when I auditioned for the show."

"Mayim helps out on science things," said  Steve Molaro  "Kunal helps out on Indian things. Kaley helps out on adorable things...I'm not going to do everyone.

"The difference between Amy and Sheldon is that Sheldon missed out on a few things, and doesn't care, and Amy missed out, and wants it," said Prady.

"She's a very sexual actress," jokes Lorre. "And a very dirty girl."

Where do you feel the show can grow to?

"The basis of our show is brilliant minds and science, which can cover anything. We can justify anything we do. 'It's science,'" said Parsons.

Any favorite moments?

"My joke is kissing Kaley. But actually, it's when Amy and Sheldon had their drunk kiss," said Bialik.

"I loved the Penny and Sheldon acting lesson. Also the look between Kaley and Johnny on the New Year's Eve episode," said Rauch.

When will Sheldon experience Pon Farr, 'cause you only have seven years?

"Sheldon is singularly devoted to science. Only time will tell...if he is actually Vulcan?," said Prady.

After four seasons, are there still challenges to playing Sheldon?

"I still don't know what he's talking about. That's really what Mayim is for. We are so lucky on this show because there is very little we can phone in. Each episode is a challenge and the story is organic," said Parsons. "We keep getting things that grow from the same place they come from. They are honest, so the challenge is to remain true."

Do you think your show inspires interest in science?

"We have a saying about our show: 'Cheers' brought people to alcoholism the way we bring people to science," said Lorre.