Most of us have experienced at least a bit of trepidation when it comes to finding work at some point or another. Whether you got laid off, or were outright fired, or even if you simply realize it's time for you to move on from your current gig, it can be a daunting task to start down the path of gainful employment one again. While Kaley Cuoco had a very long stint on a hit sitcom to keep any such fears at bay for several years, it turns out that the actress wasn't even really worried about her next role once The Big Bang Theory ended, because of the way she approaches her career in general.
Kaley Cuoco spent 12 seasons bringing the funny to audiences as Penny on The Big Bang Theory. Even though she did a few movies during that time, being one of the leads of a TV show is time-consuming work, so Cuoco spent most of her career energy on her main gig. You might think that, after such a long period of pretty reliable work, Cuoco was nervous about what would come next, but she recently told the Television Academy that this was not the case, saying:
I wasn't actively looking for my next project and didn't want to chase anything down. I knew something cool would come along.
Wow. Can you feel the peace and relaxation just taking over your whole body right now? I certainly do. What would it be like, I wonder, to simply enjoy the ride of life and trust that the universe will present you with the next perfect opportunity when your current options are exhausted, no matter the reason?
Kaley Cuoco also noted that she hasn't really spent much time carefully plotting any potential career moves during her time as a successful actress, and said that even when she realized that The Big Bang Theory was likely nearing its end point, that didn't change for her. It's worth noting, though, that when any of us are looking for our next move (career or otherwise) in life, we often have to pay close attention to ourselves and what's going on around us, and this is exactly what Cuoco did to nab her next on-screen project, the upcoming HBO Max series, The Flight Attendant.
Here's how attuned Cuoco was to the signs presented to her. In 2017, she was shopping on Amazon and ended up randomly clicking on the pre-order page for the novel The Flight Attendant, written by Chris Bohjalian. According to her, after reading the one-sentence synopsis and noting that the cover art featured a blonde woman, her actress Spidey-sense kicked in, she knew this was the next project for her and then took action.
My manager and agent had suggested for a while that if I ever found a book or an article I liked, I should try to adapt it for a project, but I was never interested in producing. But as soon as I read this line, I called my team and said 'You guys, I found the book! Oh my God, I love it and it's phenomenal and can we see if the rights are available?'
The story focuses on Cuoco's titular character, Cassie Bowden, a wild party-girl who will wake up in a hotel in Bangkok with a massive hangover and a bloody dead body in bed next to her. Cassie will flee the scene to go back to New York, but once the body is discovered and the police start to investigate, she'll begin to wonder if she actually did kill her bedmate. Cuoco has already called Cassie "an actor's dream" because of her "rollercoaster of issues," so it's pretty clear that she made the right move by listening to her gut when she followed that Amazon link.
The Flight Attendant was able to resume filming on Season 1 in early September (with lots of new safety features in place), so we may still have a while to wait until we can feast our eyes on the suspenseful dramedy. You can stay tuned to CinemaBlend for an update on the premiere, but in the meantime, be sure to see what's coming up in the next few weeks with our fall premiere guide!
