The Sad Reason Why ‘The Big Bang Theory’ Cast May Not Reunite for a 20th Anniversary Special

The Big Bang Theory is set to celebrate its twentieth anniversary next year, but a source tells Star that lingering tensions between Jim Parsons and castmates Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco threaten to torpedo any hope fans have of a reunion special.

“There’s just not a lot of enthusiasm about the idea from the leading trio of stars from the show,” admits the source. “Kaley and Johnny have moved on with their lives, and they aren’t really friends with Jim anymore.”

In 2021, Cuoco, 40, told Variety that she and Galecki, 51, had “talked a lot about” returning for a 13th season, but that Parsons, 53, wanted off the hit show, which creator and executive producer Chuck Lorre made clear would not continue out without him.

“If Jim really wants this to happen, he needs to rebuild his ties to Kaley and Johnny, and he needs to be sincere about it,” the source says. “That’s a tall order, but at least Jim has the loyalty of some of the other key players from the show,” including Simon Helberg, Mayim Bialik and Kunal Nayyar.

“If he can on-board those guys for a clip-filled reunion like Friends had a few years ago, Kaley and Johnny will certainly be easier to convince,” reveals the source.

That’s not the only roadblock standing in the way of a The Big Bang Theory reunion.

“The other big issue here is that none of these people need the one or two million bucks they’d make on a reunion show,” the source says of the cast, who were making $1 million an episode each in 2017, per People.

Plus, “making that show was incredibly hard work for all of them, and it isn’t something Kaley is particularly interested in revisiting right now,” the source adds. “This anniversary could very well come and go with zero fanfare whatsoever.”