The Big Love Theory: Off-Screen Partners of The Cast of The Big Bang Theory

For once, a group of socially awkward nerds were dating the most eligible girls on television and not getting rejected. During the 10 seasons of the sitcom, many relationships, both on the screen and off, developed. The most famous on-screen relationship was between Leonard, an experimental physicist, and Penny, a stunning aspiring actress who lives next door.

Penny, who previously only dated tall and muscular men, ends up falling for Leonard, and the two date on and off until getting married. A true turn of events.

The show has become such a part of fans’ lives, that they may forget at times that the relationships are only part of the show and that the stars have real-life relationships at home.

Yes, it is true - Bernadette and Howard are not actually married with an adorable baby and Sheldon and Amy aren’t going to get married. But, don’t be so disappointed- the stars also have real girlfriends, boyfriends, husbands and wives that are pretty darn cute, so let’s give them a chance here, what do you say?

The cast of TBBT differs quite a lot from their geeky characters in the show. Actually, these are a group of extremely bright and wealthy individuals. So of course, they have dated some pretty attractive people.

Take a look at the list to see which nerd on the show actually scored a beautiful girl in real life and which stars in the show actually dated in real-life.

Mayim plays the part of Amy Fowler, who is a neurobiologist and Sheldon’s love interest. The two meet on an online dating site after Raj and Howard see her and think she’ll be a good match for Sheldon.

Mayim was married to Michael Stone until 2012, with Michael converting to Judaism from Mormonism. The pair had two children together before divorcing. The two boys are now aged 9 and 12.

Jim Parsons plays the adorable Sheldon Cooper who is a genius physicist. He recently married his long-time boyfriend Todd Spiewak who is a graphic designer.

The two wed on May 13, enjoying a beautiful wedding at the iconic Rainbow Room on the 65th floor of Rockefeller Center in New York. All of their close friends and family joined in on the celebrations, as well as many of Jim’s fellow geeks and co-stars from the show.

Johnny plays one of the main male protagonists, Leonard, who is an experimental physicist. While he is geeky, he also succeeds in winning over attractive women like his neighbor Penny.

In real life, Johnny also has a long history of dating. After working on the show Roseanne, he dated briefly one of his on-screen girlfriends, Sara Gilbert. Eventually, Sara came out of the closet, we hope Johnny got over her by then!

Simon plays Howard, a nerdy aerospace engineer and former astronaut who is married to the sweet Bernadette. In real life, Simon married Jocelyn Towne in 2007. Jocelyn is also an actress and has acted in minor roles in movies and television since 2000.

The two even worked on a film together called We’ll Never Have Paris in which Simon starred as the lead and Jocelyn produced it. The happy couple have two children together, a daughter named Adeline who is five years old, and a son named Wilder who is three.

Big Bang Theory fans around the globe were super excited to find out that two of the main stars of the show were dating. Leonard and Penny dated both in the show and as Johnny and Kaley from 2008 until 2010.

They tried very hard to keep their relationship as private as possible. Kaley Cuoco said about their relationship, “It was such a huge part of my life and no one knew about it,” she continued, “It was a wonderful relationship, but we never spoke a word about it and never went anywhere together.”

Kaley dated actor Henry Cavill, who is famous for his portrayal of Superman, for a whole 10 days.

Their brief fling was just before Kaley met her now ex-husband Ryan Sweeting (who she married after three months.) The paparazzi were all over the “couple.” Kaley once remarked during an interview, “I had no one following me until I met Superman.”

Johnny plays one of the main protagonist geeks in the show Dr. Leonard Hofstadter. In the show, he dated blonde bombshell Penny

Galecki has had several other roles including acting as David Healy in Roseanne. He dated actress Kelsey Harper who also had some big roles. She has now retired and works as a florist, which we are guessing is a lot more peaceful!

Nathan Fillion played himself in one episode of TBBT when Raj and Leonard approach him at a deli. Nathan is most recognized for his work in the ABC series Castle as Richard Castle and as Captain Malcolm Reynolds in the sci-fi series Firefly.

Earlier this year, the actor started going out with Baywatch actress Krista Allen, who was previously married twice. She also dated George Clooney for a couple of years until 2004.

Kaley Cuoco got a lot of media attention when she got engaged to former professional tennis player, Ryan Sweeting after only three months of dating. Apparently, Cuoco was very sure that she found the one.

Kaley had said, “From day one I just knew immediately and it’s been magic.” The two got married in 2013 but contrary to Kaley’s previous confidence about the relationship, the two divorced after just two years. There were rumors spreading of divorce three months before they broke up, but Cuoco denied such a thing.

Kaley dated Christopher French, a founder of the LA-based band Annie Automatic from 2011-2012. He has composed music for a few series such as Young & Hungry and Life Flight as well.

Christopher is now married to Ashley Tisdale (from the High School Musical movies), whom he met in 2014. He proposed to her on the top of the Empire State Building. The musical duo got married in 2014.

Dan interviews Penny for a sales representative position at Bernadette’s pharmaceutical company. Dan confesses that he is terrified of Bernadette.

Stephen has played multiple roles but is most recognized for his parts in films Office Space and Dodgeball. In 2008, he got married to Romy Rosemont, who is also an actor. She is recognized for her roles on Glee where she played Finn’s mother and most recently, a series called Beyond.

Brian played Kurt, Penny’s ex-boyfriend in a few episodes in the beginning of season 1, and even stole Leonard and Sheldon’s pants.

He has acted in other shows since, like NCIS and CSI. He has been married to Jill, who is a bodybuilder and fitness extraordinaire for over 10 years. The two fit gurus seem perfect for one another. We are sure they work out together.

In 2016, Kaley started to date her latest hubby, Karl Cook. Karl is 27 and works as a professional equestrian.

The couple made their relationship public last year after posting a series of cozy Instagram pictures together at the ranch with Karl’s horses. Kaley also shares the love of horses and often goes riding with her equestrian beau. The two were married during a glamorous ceremony in June 2018, but sadly decided to part ways in 2021.

Dean Norris has made guest appearances during a few episodes of TBBT as Colonel Richard Williams. He was interested in the navigation and guidance system that the guys had been working on.

Dean is most known for his role as Hank in the series Breaking Bad. He has been married for almost 18 years to fellow Harvard alum Bridget, an attorney who specializes in transactional law.

Christopher Lloyd, who plays Doc from Back to the Future, made a guest appearance on TBBT as a creepy homeless man who rents out Sheldon’s room after Sheldon wants to take revenge on Leonard.

Christopher has been married four times, and divorced four times. His last wife was Jane Walker Wood, a journalist turned screenwriter. She is known for writing the movie Bob the Butler. The couple had an age gap of 22 years, but who’s counting?

The two dated for only a year. They took their relationship public at a Lakers game in March 2012.

Brett who is a musician from Hawaii is the lead singer and bassist of a reggae band called Pepper. The couple broke up after a year and some very PDA paparazzi pictures!

Kaley and Kevin met in 2003 while co-starring together in the movie, The Hollow. They dated for one year.

Afterward, Kevin played the character Damien in Gossip Girl. Kevin has moved on from Kaley and is now married to their wife Jaime Feld since 2013, welcoming in 2015 twin baby girls.

Johnny Galecki, one of the major stars of The Big Bang Theory dated Kelli Garner, an actress in the series Pan-Am. The pair dated for two years and Galecki brought Garner to Kaley Cuoco’s wedding.

Throughout their relationship, they were often seen together at red carpet events so once they split and showed up to events alone, it was quite obvious that they had broken up. The two say that they stayed friends after they split. Garner has since portrayed Marilyn Monroe in the TV mini-series, The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe.

Kaley dated singer Jaron between 2005-2006. At the time, Jaron found fame as a singer in the country-pop musical duo Evan and Jaron, along with his twin brother, Evan.

They dated only briefly and each went their separate ways following the breakup. Kaley proceeded to land the role of a lifetime as Penny the following year, while Jaron’s fame and musical career came to an end.

Sara married Linda Perry, a Grammy-nominated rock singer-songwriter in 2014. Perry was the lead singer in the all-girl rock group 4 Non-Blondes.

Since then, she has worked with many world-renowned artists including Adele, Pink, Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus and more. A year after they married, the loving couple welcomed their first child, adorable Rhodes Emilio to the world. He is now two years old.

Melissa Rauch plays Bernadette, a microbiologist who is married to Howard. Her on-screen and off-screen husband differ greatly in size.

While Howard is pretty much the same size as Melissa, her real-life husband screenwriter Winston is 6’3. That is quite the difference between Melissa’s petite height of 4’11. The two lovebirds have been together since 2007. In July 2017 they announced that they are expecting a baby.

In 2006, Johnny dated actress Ari Graynor. The couple didn’t date for long before breaking up for unknown reasons.

You might recognize Ari, as she has been in many movies including Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist and The Sitter. Her first acting gig was as Caitlin Rucker in The Sopranos. Most recently, she has been acting as one of the leads in the Showtime series I’m Dying Up Here.

Sara Rue acted as Dr. Stephanie Barnett, Leonard’s girlfriend for a short while before he ends things because he feels that the relationship is progressing too fast.

Sara Rue married her longtime love Kevin Price, who is a teacher, in 2011. The couple has stayed strong which is not always the norm in Hollywood. They have two daughters together, Talulah who is their biological child, and Adelaide who they adopted.

In 2002, Kaley briefly dated actor Thad Luckinbill, who is most recognized for his 11-year streak on the soap opera The Young and the Restless as J.T. The couple dated about a year.

Thad still appears in shows now and then, most recently acting in a film called Only the Brave as Scott Norris.

Brian plays Bert, a Caltech employee in the geology department. Bert brings Amy beautiful rocks every day in order to express his love for her.

Besides TBBT, Brian has also acted in The Sarah Silverman Program and the Dumb and Dumber sequel. He is married to Melanie Truhett, a television producer and worked on Drew Carey’s Improv-A-Ganza. They have been married for almost 15 years and have one son.

Elizabeth had the role as Dr. Catherine Millstone on the show, a character who was interested in Raj’s essay on the Kuiper belt.

Elizabeth is recognized for several parts in series such as Scrubs, The Young and the Restless, and NCIS: Los Angeles. In 2005, Elizabeth married Lukas Reiter, a former lawyer who currently works as a television executive and writer. He has produced shows such as The Blacklist, The Firm, and The Practice.

Mike acted as himself on the show, as a previous NASA astronaut and veteran of two Space Shuttle missions. He skypes with Howard regarding Howard’s next expedition and his responsibilities.

Michael married Carola Pardo in 1989 and they have a son and daughter together. Having Mike in space was hard on Carola, as she was at home with two young children by herself. She prayed for him to come back home safely.

While we are not able to say whether this relationship was actual, the one son of the famous Kardashian clan was for some time connected to actress Alessandra Torresani in 2011.

The two were seen together at the Coachella music festival and dating rumors started circulating from there. As is well known, Rob later dated model and former adult dancer, Blac Chyna and they had a baby together before they split. We later saw Torresani as Claire on The Big Bang Theory.

Michael played David Underhill, a very successful physicist Penny dates until she realizes that he is married.

Prior to TBBT, he had a recurring role on the CW drama One Tree Hill as Cooper Lee. In 2009, he tied the knot with Sandra Hess, a gorgeous Swiss actress, and fashion model. She is best known for her role as Sonya Blade in the film Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. The two have been happily married for almost 10 years.

Johnny and Ariella Nicole have been together since 2015. Johnny posted an unclear picture of him and blonde kissing on New Years and fans were convinced that he was back together with his ex-girlfriend and costar, Kaley Cuoco. The theory was proven wrong, as the girl in the picture was actually Ariella Nicole.

The pair were recently seen on the beach together while on a romantic holiday in Maui. We don’t know much about Ariella, but we do hope to get more details in the near future.

David had one appearance on TBBT playing Officer Hernandez. He is in charge of Sheldon’s case after Sheldon gets robbed and he is taken to the police station.

David has acted in several other TV shows and movies. He is most recognized for his role as Sgt. Ray ‘Casey Kasem’ Griego in the series Generation Kill. He has been married to actress and voice actress Maria Canals since 1999. The cute couple have two children together.

LeVar is most known for his role in Star Trek: The Next Generation as Commander Geordi La Forge. He also was the host of the PBS kids show Reading Rainbow.

LeVar played himself on TBBT and came to Sheldon’s social group at the apartment after receiving an invite via Twitter. LeVar has been married to makeup artist Stephanie Cozart since 1992, she works as a makeup artist for the CBS show The Talk.

Kunal Nayyar plays astrophysicist and geek Raj. He married Neha Kapur in 2011. In real life, Kunal seems to have scored a fine lady although his character in The Big Bang Theory experiences otherwise.

Kunal`s wife is gorgeous and to top it off, she is a former beauty queen, receiving the title of Miss India in 2006. She competed in the Miss Universe pageant that same year. Kunal met his gorgeous lady while on a visit to India, where they were both raised.

Matt acts as Howard’s younger half-brother Josh on The Big Bang Theory, but he is most famous for his role as Robbie Shapiro on Nickelodeon’s Victorious.

Since 2014, rumors have been circulating that Matt is dating his former co-star from the show, Liz Gillies. The two are often seen in adorable selfies together and constantly talk about how much they love each other. This has fans believing that the two are more than just friends.

Mark’s acting career started well before he played the role of Dr. Eric Gablehauser on The Big Bang Theory. He has actually acted in several other sitcoms including Will & Grace, Seinfeld, and Boy Meets World.

Mark has been married to actress Spencer Kayden since 2004 and the two have one child together. The couple has even appeared in theater productions together. His wife spencer is most recognized for her performance in the Broadway show, Urinetown and for her work as a former cast member of the sketch comedy show MADtv.

DJ Qualls acted as Toby Loobenfeld, a research assistant at Caltech whom Sheldon appoints to play his non-existent cousin “Leopold.” Aside from this role, DJ has worked as a fashion model and actor. He is most known as nerdy and awkward Kyle in the Road Trip movies.

For a little over a year, DJ dated the beautiful actress and model Nikki Reed, who is most known for her role as Rosalie Hale in the Twilight Saga movies. While he hasn’t been in any serious relationships since, Nikki has been married twice. She is married to fellow vampire and actor Ian Somerhalder from The Vampire Diaries.

Joshua’s role in TBBT is Dr. Siebert, the president of the California Institute of Technology where the guys work.

He is most recognized for his parts in The West Wing and currently Scandal. In 1996, he tied the knot with Melissa who at the time was a costume director for various TV shows. The two have two children together; a daughter named Isabel and a son named Avi.

The beautiful Summer Glau played herself on the show. Apart from TBBT, she is most recognized for her part as River Tam in the sci-fi series Firefly. The gang runs into the sci-fi actress on the train, and they all fight over who will go talk to her.

In 2014, she married longtime actor boyfriend Val Morrison in a secret wedding. Val Morrison is best known for his roles in Days of our Lives and the horror film Hollows Grove.

From 1996-1998, Johnny dated Laura Harris, a Canadian actress. The two actors met while filming Suicide Kings, a mystery crime film.

The two were very young when they dated, Laura was 19 and Johnny 20. She is currently single and still acting from time to time. Her last role was Esther in the series Whole Day Down.

Stephen played the part of Dave Gibbs, a guy who dated Amy for a short period after she broke up with Sheldon.

Outside of The Big Bang Theory, Stephen is a very successful British TV star and has co-created shows such as The Office and Extras. In 2017, he started dating beautiful actress Mircea who is currently starring in the comedy series  Episodes, alongside Matt LeBlanc.

Keith Carradine’s time on TBBT was short but sweet. He came on as Penny’s father Wyatt. Keith comes from a family of actors, as the whole Carradine family, his father, and four brothers, are all actors. Carradine has had roles in many other television shows such as Fargo and Madam Secretary.

He is married to Hayley DuMond, an actress who has appeared in House Hunting and The Hunter’s Moon. The couple got together in 1997, when they met on the set of The Hunter’s Moon. They were married in 2006. Carradine has three children from former relationships.

Once upon a time, the Walking Dead star Steven Yeun was Sheldon’s former roommate. His time in the show was short-lived, appearing only in the first season as the guy who warned Leonard to “run fast.”

In 2016, Steven married his wife Joana Pak and the cute couple had a traditional stunning Korean wedding. They welcome a baby boy into the world the following year on St.Patrick’s Day.

Rick Fox plays Glenn, Bernadette’s former professor and ex-boyfriend. He held a panel on global warming where he ran into Howard and Bernadette.

Rick is a Canadian actor and former basketball team member of the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. In 1999, he married actress, singer and former Miss America winner, Vanessa Williams. Talk about a power couple. The two have a 17-year-old daughter together. In 2015, she once again married (the third time’s the charm?) to businessman Jim Skrip.

Will Wheaton plays himself on the Big Bang theory. At first, he doesn’t get along with Sheldon and the gang, but ends up becoming close friends with them.

The real Wil rose to fame after acting in Stand By Me alongside Rob Reiner. His wife in real-life is also an actress and has played roles in Sharknado and Tabletop.

Laurie plays Sheldon’s devout and overbearing Christian mother Mary Cooper. Laurie is most recognized for her role as Jackie Harris on the sitcom Roseanne.

In 1993, much to fans’ approval, Laurie married Matt Roth, her Roseanne co-star, who acted as her abusive on-screen boyfriend. Unfortunately, their real-life romance didn’t work and they got divorced in 2014. They have three children together, a daughter and two sons.

Margo Harshman played the part of Alex Jensen, a doctoral student and Sheldon’s assistant on The Big Bang Theory from 2012 until 2013.  Margo was really into Leonard, to Penny’s dismay.

Since her role in TBBT, Margo has had a recurring part on the television series NCIS. Margo dated Chris Marquette, an actor, in the early 2000s before they called it quits. Marquette acted in such movies as The Girl Next Door and Fanboys.

In TBBT, Josh works at the comic book store where the guys frequently visit.

Josh, who is a Harvard graduate, is most recognized for his role as Nelson “Big Head: Bighetti in the HBO series Silicon Valley. In 2014, the actor married his fellow actress Meghan Falcone. The couple met while performing together at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. Meghan has acted in a few shows herself, including Californication and Foursome.

John Ross Bowie plays Dr. Kripke on the Big Bang theory. Dr. Kripke is not such a likable character and is unable to pronounce the letters R or l.

In reality, however, John has played roles in Reno 911! And the citizens' brigade. He is married to Jamie Denbo who starred in the Ghostbusters and works as a comedian. Quite different from his character with his speech impediment.

In 2014, rumors sparked that Johnny was dating singer Katie Waissel. Katie finished in seventh place in the seventh series of The X-Factor UK.

They never confirmed their relationship, however, the two were seen on a date at the intimate Chateau Marmont restaurant, and various sources told the press that the actor-singer duo were dating. Rumor had it that they began dating a short time after she divorced from her husband of two months, model Brian Moote.

Eliza made a guest appearance on TBBT as FBI Agent Angela Page who does a background check on Howard.

She has played bigger roles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Bring It On. Earlier this year, Eliza got engaged to Peter Palandjian, a former professional tennis player and current CEO of Intercontinental Real Estate Corp. They have an age difference of 16 years, but apparently this doesn’t bother the actress!