Producers of "The Big Bang Theory" did not know what to expect when they first introduced Mayim Bialik's character Amy Farrah Fowler in the series. Just how would people react to a female version of Sheldon Cooper (played by Jim Parsons), and how would people warm up to the idea of Sheldon being in a serious relationship?
But over the course of the show, fans have fallen in love with Amy, and have steadily praised the "Shamy" tandem.
During an interview with The Guardian, Bialik talked about the similarities and differences she shares with her characters, and how people's perceptions of nerds and geeks are changing because of the CBS sitcom.
"There are things she and I are similar in, the way we approach thinking and our appreciation for science, but she is pretty much a character," Bialik said about Amy.
However, don't expect Bialik to share with you her "Little House On the Prairie" fan fiction just like Amy, since the actress said that she's never tried delving into that specific interest of Amy's.
Bialik added that it's very important for "The Big Bang Theory" to get their science right on the show, and that is why they have a phsics consultant - Dr. David Saltzberg. "He is from UCLA and he's the one who is in charge of all that. It is very important for our show and for our producers that we do that. A lot of our writers have science backgrounds and everything is Google-able so a lot of their stuff comes from the internet too. All of our writers are really bright," she said.
In fact, the writers are so amazing that they were able to transform nerds like Amy and Bernadette (played by Melissa Rauch) into positive role models for young girls.
"The Bernadette character on 'The Big Bang Theory' is a microbiologist so I am proud that on our show we have two different kinds of women: one wears pretty dresses and gets to have pretty things in her hair and one is the Amy character who's a lot more simple. Both are versions of scientists so, yeah, I think it is tremendous," said Bialik.
In Hollywood, people easily fall into stereotyping people, particularly scientists, but Bialik hopes that their show arechanging the way people think of nerds and geeks by showing them as having active social lives and relationships.
"I think that is an important way to portray them," she said. "When (Amy) started out, she was really socially awkward and really craving some sort of social outlet and she found that with Penny and Bernadette. So now she has a lot more social confidence and I think that has shifted her relationship with Sheldon too."
