Years After Kaley Cuoco Recalled Being Sexualized In “The Big Bang Theory,” The Show’s Creator Reflected On Initially Making Her Character “Clichéd” And “One-Dimensional”

Interestingly, Penny’s initial lack of development beyond her “goofy” persona and sex appeal is something that has been discussed — and critiqued — by Big Bang viewers for years.

Back in 2021, Kaley opened up about how her character’s outfits were super sexualized early on in the show during a chat with W Magazine. “I started Big Bang at 21 years old,” she said, per Digital Spy. “I was the cute girl next door to the nerds. It was all about booty shorts, Juicy Couture zip-ups.”

“And as the years went on, Penny grows up, Kaley grows up. All of a sudden, it’s like, ‘Can I have a long sleeve shirt? How about a slack? How about a loafer? I never wanna see that high heel again!’” she said.

Kaley, now 39, also said, “That was so long ago. When I think about how many years ago that was… it was a different time,” before adding: “Also, by the way, at 21, I was hot. I wanted to show that stuff off. You would not catch me dead in a sexy cat costume now!”