Workaholic Kaley Cuoco has another show coming down the pike

From the twisted minds that brought you Ozark and The Boys comes another curve ball from Kaley Cuoco

Aux News Kaley Cuoco
Workaholic Kaley Cuoco has another show coming down the pike
Kaley Cuoco Photo: David Livingston

Since her sentence on The Big Bang Theory ended a few years ago, Kaley Cuoco has been unstoppable. Unburdened by the live studio audience guffawing at someone mistaking DC’s Captain Marvel for Marvel’s Captain Marvel, her reign of terror has netted two Emmy nods for her delightful mystery comedy, The Flight Attendant. She even made a mea culpa with the geek culture she spent a decade debasing as the titular star of Harley Quinn. All is forgiven.

Cuoco’s on a hot streak, so she’s doubling down and heading over to the little streamer that nobody cares about, Peacock. Earlier today, Peacock, allegedly a service rumored to have an adaptation of Tiger King starring John Cameron Mitchell and Kate McKnnon, announced that Cuoco would star in Based On A True Story, an upcoming dark comedic thriller series from The Boys’ Craig Rosenberg and renowned neck actor Jason Bateman.

While much of the series is being kept under lock and key, we’re told it will satirize our country’s sorely unchecked obsession with true crime. Appropriately, Based On A True Story is based on a true story and follows “a realtor, a plumber, and a former tennis star whose lives unexpectedly collide, exposing America’s obsession with true crime, murder, and the slow close toilet seat.”

However, we did learn that Cuoco will play a married woman named Ava Bartlet, which should make the Cucoco faithful very happy. If there were ever a strong starting place for a TV series, it would be a married woman named Ava Bartlet. We look forward to Ava Bartlet mania sweeping the nation, with kids meme-ing about the Barlet sweep, celebrating the summer of Bartlet, and accosting Kaley Cuoco at Comic-Con by telling her “it’s Bartlet time.”

60 Comments

  • south-of-heaven-av says:

    Never fails to amuse me that angry “nerds” get angry about BBT but actual genius scientists seemed to think it was a cute lark and did cameos.

    • laurenceq-av says:

      Actual genius scientists don’t get a lot of TV offers.

    • doclawyer-av says:

      Agreed. It was a competent, middle of the road network sitcom but how in the actual hell was it offensive? I know nerds are such an oppressed group lol. 

      • sickofyoursh1t-av says:

        This nerd rather enjoyed it!

      • nonotheotherchris-av says:

        I don’t think it was so much offensive so much as for me my parents and wife’s parents were always like “that show is *so* funny, I can’t believe you don’t like it!”, and I think many “nerds” felt similarly. This is of course the very definition of a first world problem, but it certainly made me view a fine, middle of the road comedy with some degree of contempt.

    • it-has-a-super-flavor--it-is-super-calming-av says:

      Those scientists had a gig or hoped for a gig on the show. Paid. You don’t publicly criticise a chance at work. That’s why most people in Hollywood say nothing bad about any Hollywood movies, no matter what they think.
      Then again, angry nerds get angry over anything.

    • liebkartoffel-av says:

      I mean, I doing know anyone who was actively offended by the show. I maybe griped once or twice about how 90% of the “jokes” were just “mention obscure (to the audience) nerd thing,” but for the most part I happily ignored it like I ignore every other hokey multi-camera CBS sitcom.

      • evanwaters-av says:

        Yeah to me the worst thing is that it frequently *could be* funnier but somehow just misses opportunities to do so. Like there are setups that could be paid off way better. 

      • sinatraedition-av says:

        “I mean, I doing know anyone who was actively offended by the show.”Oh man, for a long time everyone here was screwing themselves into the floor over this show. It was lazy, crass, thin, annoying, etc. But a lot of things got on TV like never before: Science Friday, the life of academic scientists, comic book culture, sci-fi references, etc. Honestly it was nice to see smart people portrayed mostly innocently. A far cry from Urkel. I liked spotting things in BBT that I only discussed with precious few people. The singularity episode was particularly well-crafted. Yes it got lazy but so did Mad Men. Holy shit, did Mad Men shit the bed the last two or three seasons.

      • liffie420-av says:

        Yeah I don’t get it. I watched the entire series, and honestly in the first couple seasons they did do a lot of insert nerd reference cue laughter, like a caricature of nerd culture. But at the series continued they actually built a good bit of depth to the characters, except maybe Raj, and I think they were more “honestly” representing who nerds actually are.

    • Ruhemaru-av says:

      Honestly, the most offensive thing about BBT is how no one actually beat up Sheldon other than his twin sister. He essentially got away with treating people horribly constantly as long as he apologized or ran away so that they went looking for him.
      The show did use some tired ‘nerd/fandom’ tropes and got really cringey. The Billy Bob Thorton episode in particular doubled down on it.

    • canyda-av says:

      Speaking as a nerd, I loved BBT. Well, up until the point Penny and Leonard got married and then the show fell off a cliff.

    • 50centcoordinator-av says:

      Elon musk also showed up on there as well. 

    • domicile-av says:

      I think people forget that TBBT released before being a “nerd” or into very specific genre things was seen as “cool” in the mainstream. It premiered in 2007, Iron Man didn’t even come out until 2008. It was an average sitcom with an oversized influence on the “cultural zeitgeist” as it were. It wasn’t the only reason for more widespread acceptance of “nerdy” things but it definitely helped usher it into the forefront.

    • gargsy-av says:

      “but actual genius scientists”

      Yeah, isn’t it weird that people who were getting paid money to appear on a show have a different opinion than people who watched the show?

      Oh, it’s not? Not at all? Well, I have to wonder what the fucking point of your comment was…

    • hasselt-av says:

      Having worked in science/medicine environments for my career, I can say that those scientists I know who were aware of the show generally enjoyed it, but weren’t at all obsessed with it. I would also say that actual professional scientists tend to probably be less into the typical nerd pursuits of the characters than non-scientists, on average.  

    • erakfishfishfish-av says:

      What offended me is that my parents thought it was this great insight into my life. It would be like watching Breaking Bad to better understand a family member who worked as a French teacher.

  • gwbiy2006-av says:

    ‘renowned neck actor Jason Bateman.’Somebody with a better sense of wit and clever wordplay want to explain that one to me?

    • antsnmyeyes-av says:

      Jason Bateman famously underwent neck removal surgery in 2019. 

    • dremiliolizardo-av says:

      It’s second shift on the AV Club. It doesn’t have to make sense, it just has to sound supercilious.

    • laurenceq-av says:

      Same.  What the fuck does that mean?

    • thundercatsridesagain-av says:

      The whole last paragraph is pretty bizarre, too:“However, we did learn that Cuoco will play a married woman named Ava Bartlet, which should make the Cucoco faithful very happy. If there were ever a strong starting place for a TV series, it would be a married woman named Ava Bartlet. We look forward to Ava Bartlet mania sweeping the nation, with kids meme-ing about the Barlet sweep, celebrating the summer of Bartlet, and accosting Kaley Cuoco at Comic-Con by telling her, ‘It’s Bartlet time’.”Huh? What is this nonsense?And don’t forget this part:“Earlier today, Peacock, allegedly a service rumored to have an adaptation of Tiger King starring John Cameron Mitchell and Kate McKnnon…”First, he missed a typo in McKinnon. Second, what the fuck does that have to do with anything? The non sequiturs in this article kill me, and they’re a hallmark of this particular writer. It’s like he thinks inserting random digs or name drops into an article substitutes for an actual authorial perspective. But it never makes any sense. Anyway, there’s been a steep dropoff in the quality of the writing since the crew transferred to LA. This is but one example.

      • emperor-nero-wolfe-av says:

        I kept waiting for a joke or a comment about the similarity to the name Abby Bartlett.

      • cosmicghostrider-av says:

        The A.V. Club seems to be making a recurring gag out of trying to hard to crack jokes in articles about Kaley Cuoco. Remember the infamous “There are too many Cuoco’s in this The Flight Attendant season two trailer”.

    • liebkartoffel-av says:

      A) Typo.B) Reference to some Twitter happening or something that only terminally online people are aware of.C) Incipient aphasia. Looking forward to subsequent Schimkowitz articles wherein he references “legendary subway comedian Patton Joel Osment” and “contravening raptor Lyle Has X,” who “raffled the GWAR community with anti-rhetoric comments while headlining staples staples staples Staples stapler.”For what it’s worth, when I googled “neck actor” I got hits for Fisher Stevens, Chris Kattan, some US Weekly piece about how Bridgerton’s Phoebe Dynevor is confused over random Twitter people complimenting her on her “neck acting”–so I guess maybe it’s a thing?–and a list of actors who have had neck and throat cancer.

    • xirathi-av says:

      Jason Bateman is rumored to have two necks. It’s like the first thing mentioned on his imbd. 

  • Sarah-Hawke-av says:

    I like Cuoco, I enjoyed watching 7 something Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter which now that I think about it has a bit of a creepy name though honestly I’m only half remembering the title because I was a kid when I watched that.Then I was so surprised when she showed up in Charmed after that and the goodwill built up from those two things even got me to give Big Bang Theory a longer go than I probably would have without her presence (wasn’t really my cup of tea).Then she voiced Harley Quinn in the tv show that made me realise Harley Quinn might actually be a fun character rather than just a cliché wrapped up in sex symbol imagery (which was the impression I had as a passing Batman experiencer from things like the Arkham Asylum game).I hope she continues to pop up in things that surprise me and I probably enjoy.And also hope she doesn’t turn out to be another Hollywood jerk IRL or something.

    • bernardg-av says:

      And also hope she doesn’t turn out to be another Hollywood jerk IRL or something.
      You have to wait for the next 10 yrs or so, if by a chance some disgruntled assistants, bodyguards, or craft service persons spill out all the beans.

    • sonicoooahh-av says:

      We had HBOMax this summer, so I binged Flight Attendant and my daughter watched through Harley Quinn. All the Kaley Cuoco also made me think back to Rules, for which I had considered myself too old — seems like it may have been TGIF — though I did watch some to see how they handled and transitioned past John Ritter’s death (plus it had Katey Segal, David Spade and James Garner).Ms. Cuoco has clearly been working her whole life. I assume her deal with Priceline is comparable to what they paid Shatner, add that to the money she made from Big Bang, she could choose to do less, but instead she just keeps taking chance and working. Obviously, she enjoys what she’s doing and is a pro.

      • kencerveny-av says:

        I did think it a bit of a questionable choice that she signed on to do a series of Seagram’s commercials while her series about a high functioning alcoholic was still it’s first run.

        • gargsy-av says:

          “I did think it a bit of a questionable choice that she signed on to do a series of Seagram’s commercials while her series about a high functioning alcoholic was still it’s first run.”

          Actors aren’t their characters. A highly-functioning adult should know that.

    • gargsy-av says:

      “ now that I think about it has a bit of a creepy name”

      Yeah, a father not wanting his daughter treated like shit by shitty boys is creepy, innit?

    • Smurph-av says:

      She’s got incredible charisma but I wonder if she might end up overexposed. She stays out of the headlines though, so that helps. I feel like she’s building towards a critical mass where she ends up like Sandra Bulluck where she can take time off and only has to make a movie every few years to keep the heat up.

    • liffie420-av says:

      I have always enjoyed her. Never watched 7 rules for dating my daughter. But I have always found her to be delightful, I wouldn’t say she’s the greatest actor in the world, but she is delightful, and yes like you I hope she isn’t a jerk in real life.

  • liebkartoffel-av says:

    Coming down (or up) the pike. “Going down the pike”…well, just isn’t an idiom, but I guess would imply that she’s sending this new show away.

    • paulfields77-av says:

      I’m assuming they meant “coming down the pipe” as in a pipeline of projects.

      • liebkartoffel-av says:

        “Down the pike” is actually the older, more “correct” expression— “pike” being short for “turnpike,” or a large thoroughfare on which tolls are collected. (The New Jersey Turnpike is the only other modern remnant of this term I can think of.) Since turnpikes were the main roads between cities, on which lots of people and goods traveled, something “coming down (or up) the pike” denoted the arrival of a new or unexpected opportunity. “Coming down the pipe” is more recent, cropping up after “pike” fell into disuse, and is most likely a conflation with “in the pipeline.” The meaning is still clear, and it still makes metaphorical sense, so there’s nothing with it. There’s nothing grammatically wrong with saying “going down the pike” either…it’s just not really a thing people say.

        • paulfields77-av says:

          Interesting stuff (I gathered it was as in turnpike, but I’d never heard that phrase before, and turnpike is a rarely used word in the UK anyway).

        • gfitzpatrick47-av says:

          Florida has a major turnpike that goes between Orlando and Miami. It’s about 3x longer than the Jersey turnpike as well, but it’s usually ignored because we have two major interstates that it terminates/merges with that are usually taken (I-75 and I-95)

        • emperor-nero-wolfe-av says:

          There are lots of turnpikes around. The PA turnpike is still a thing – we drove on it on lots of trips when I was a kid, and it’s still going strong. It runs into the OH turnpike. I don’t remember if there’s an IN turnpike or not. Here in IL we have toll roads, but I don’t know if any of them are called turnpikes or not.

          • liebkartoffel-av says:

            Interesting! I was born and raised on the west coast and have spent my adult life in Iowa and Minnesota, and I was only ever aware of turnpikes except in reference to the New Jersey turnpike in shows/movies set in New York.

        • donboy2-av says:

          Several northeastern states still have roads called Turnpikes, including MA, CT, and NY.

        • barrycracker-av says:

          Where does the expression, “shut your pie hole” come from? You’re more exhausting than Sheldon Cooper.

          • liebkartoffel-av says:

            Obviously “pie hole” is a colloquialism for one’s mouth, but the origin of the phrase is uncertain—a source of somewhat dubious quality indicates that it’s an Americanism from the 1980s. Now, a true mystery is the origin of the imperative phrase “go fuck yourself.” I keep searching for the earliest usage of “go fuck yourself,” but no matter how many potential sources of “go fuck yourself” I investigate I simply cannot find definitive evidence of when someone first said “go fuck yourself.”

      • kinjacaffeinespider-av says:

        or they’re all high.

    • kinjacaffeinespider-av says:

      AV Club writing?
      Down the drain.

  • waystarroyco-av says:

    I don’t like her. She was kind of prissy and self centered on bert kreischers camping show. Like annoying…. 

  • fireupabove-av says:

    Cuoco will play a married woman named Ava BartletAh, the Bartlet marriage. Never has their been a more perfect pear….Thank you! Have a wonderful night! Please tip your servers generously!

  • thenuclearhamster-av says:

    Holy shit does this article need some editing.

  • volunteerproofreader-av says:

    Just nuke this from orbit and start over

  • tx-gowan-av says:

    Am I the only one who is flabbergasted by the categorization of The Flight Attendant as a comedy? I watched both seasons and I’ll be damned if I ever thought it was FUNNY. They were decent person-out-of-their-depth-fumbling-through-adventures storylines, but I didn’t see much HA HA. What did I miss?

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