There very nearly weren't 12 seasons of Big Bang Theory for the world to enjoy. Or at least not 12 with Kaley Cuoco.
New book The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series tells about an incident that nearly brought the show to a complete halt. Kaley Cuoco's accident while horseback riding almost called for her to have an injured leg amputated.
Cuoco, an avid equestrian competitor, was riding during the third season of the show in 2010 when she fell off, startling the animal, which then fell on her leg. She was hurried to the hospital, where medical staff did not hold out much hope.
Luckily she made it through, leg intact, but it was a dark moment for the show then still in its early years.
Cuoco herself recalled the tumult of the moment, over a decade later.
"Before I went into surgery, they made me sign something that said, ‘We don’t know until we get in there and see this leg, and it could come out that you don’t have it anymore'."
"That wasn’t the case, obviously, but I had to sign something that said, ‘OK, you can.’ Everything ended up fine, and I was up and working a week later, but the doctors acted like I was never going to walk again."
"It’s still too much for me to go into, and it sounded way worse than it was. And of course, it was spiraling and everyone was freaking out, which I get. It scared people."
Cuoco recovered within a few weeks and only had to be written out of two episodes.
At the time, only a few people really knew how serious the injury might have been. In tweets dating back to that time, people could read between the lines.
Someone suggested the leg would be written into the show.
Meanwhile, others expressed concern and hopes for her recovery at the time.
Former costar Holly Marie Combs Ryan of Charmed commented on the new technology Cuoco sported.
In regards to the behind-the-scenes book revelations, people had more visceral reactions.
Someone made a joke about the wording of a few headlines.
Cuoco clearly didn't let the accident deter her from being with horses as much as possible and advocating for them.
It's good Cuoco got back on the literal and figurative horse and that things went so well over a decade ago so we could all get the full run of Big Bang Theory.
