Ready for more? Stuart Fails to Save the Universe gets season 2 at HBO Max
After delivering HBO Max its second-biggest comedy launch ever globally, one series has already bagged a season 2 renewal — but which upstart is getting the nod?
If you told me a decade ago that Stuart Fails to Save the Universe would become HBO Max’s second-biggest comedy launch ever, I'd probably have laughed you out of the room. Yet here we are—the Big Bang Theory’s oddball comic book bloke is now officially star of his own multiversal disaster, and it’s clearly working, because HBO Max has just renewed the show for a second season. No surprise, when you look at those numbers.
Stuart Fails to Save the Universe was HBO Max’s second-biggest comedy premiere worldwide.
So what’s actually happening?
The basic gist: Stuart Bloom (still played by Kevin Sussman, thankfully) smashes a device nicked together by Sheldon and Leonard, and—because comic book store managers are famously just as trustworthy with reality-warping gadgets as theoretical physicists—he cracks open the entire multiverse. Cue a mad scramble to set the universe right, with his girlfriend Denise (Lauren Lapkus), geology mate Bert (Brian Posehn), and quantum physicist/nemesis/“all-around pain” Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie) along for the ride.
- Every step of their 'fixing reality' journey ropes in alternate-reality versions of Big Bang characters
- It’s from the usual suspects: Chuck Lorre, Zak Penn, and Bill Prady—same DNA as the original
As you probably guessed, things go... less than smoothly. The whole premise is one long exercise in escalation. And, looking at the logline, it's easy to see the show takes the phrase "multiverse Armageddon" quite literally. It really is just a kitchen-sink version of everything weird and familiar from the parent show, reassembled with more quantum chaos this time.
An official pat on the back
HBO bosses aren’t shy about why they’re doubling down. Channing Dungey, who chairs Warner Bros. TV Group, gushed about how the series managed a "completely original take" on an old favourite, and how passionate the response has been so far. Here’s how she phrased it in HBO’s official word:
Chuck, Zak, and Bill delivered something truly special with 'Stuart Fails to Save the Universe' — a completely original take on one of the most beloved franchises of all time that captures the unique essence that made 'The Big Bang Theory' so special. It's been an absolute joy to see audiences embrace this next iteration so passionately, and we can't wait to continue exploring the multiverse in Season 2.
Not to be outdone, Amy Gravitt from HBO's comedy side doubled down on the show’s genre-bending silliness and its success with both Big Bang diehards and new recruits. Point is, everyone on the executive side seems chuffed.
The Big Bang-verse keeps spreading
Let's not forget just how far the Big Bang Theory machine has rolled. The main show ran for 12 seasons, spat out 279 episodes, and made itself a fixture of telly history. Then came Young Sheldon (seven seasons of prequel nostalgia), and now we’re three series in, with George & Mandy's First Marriage lining up its third season before year's end. Not that I've seen a single episode, if I'm honest. But plainly, plenty of you have, and HBO Max is in no hurry to pull the plug on this multiverse of sitcom oddities.