Sometimes TV character origin stories are pretty fascinating, and I can’t believe just a few days after Simon Helberg admitted he almost lost his Big Bang Theory role to Kevin Sussman, Bernadette actress Melissa Rauch shared her own surprising tale about her path to stardom. It involved her being so broke before landing the Chuck Lorre series she couldn’t even pay rent.
In general, Rauch is not a super pushy person. She recently admitted that’s likely why she never asked for auditions early in her career, which at one point nearly resulted in her being unable to pay her rent.
I remember that email that I got so vividly. I was very much out of work. I was literally at the unemployment office the week that I got that audition, and the weeks leading up to it as well. And I remember just being in this state of like, ‘I’m not the most aggressive actor as far as like, you know, doing the hussle.’ But I remember calling my agents that week and being like, ‘I really need to pay my rent. Is there anything I could get on?’
Rauch was so nervous about impending bills that it forced her to be brave and ask for actual help. The best part? She told Jessica Radloff on The Big Bang Theory podcast that “even though things were slow at the time” her agent really came through for her in the clutch and hooked her up for an audition on the already-popular CBS sitcom. She said it was a lesson in "sometimes you gotta put yourself out there."
Her role in the Chuck Lorre universe was only expected to last for a week, but she was so grateful to even have the opportunity to audition. Landing the role helped pay her rent, and she got to tell her parents, who were already TBBT fans, that she would be on their TV screens soon.
I was a fan of the show. My family loved it. And I remember calling my parents and saying, ‘I have an audition for The Big Bang Theory!’ So excited, but also thought, ‘My gosh.’ It was just such a long shot and it was just supposed to be for that week.
Rauch doubled down and said that if she had not been brave and had not pushed for her agent to really get up and find something for her, she probably would still be out there struggling to pay bills. Instead, she went on to play Bernadette for 209 episodes over ten years of the show’s history (‘09-’19). She got to explore storylines like motherhood, re-entering the workplace after a big life change, and more. And she kept getting paid more and more as time went on.
In later years, the Big Bang Theory cast would renegotiate behemoth salaries, and were among the highest paid sitcom actors of all time. Kunal Nayyar recently admitted he’s using his small fortune to help pay medical bills for strangers. No matter what she and the Big Bang cast are up to in Hollywood and out, Melissa Rauch is certainly having no trouble paying her rent these days.
