It might not have been the most embarrassing moment on 'Big Bang Theory', however, fans felt very indifferent about Elon Musk's cameo on the show. In truth, whatever Elon does, chances are it'll make it into the headlines, whether it be his time on 'SNL', or his relationship alongside Amber Heard.In the following, we'll take a look at what went down when Musk appeared on TBBT, and why fans weren't impressed with the guest star.
What Happened Between 'The Big Bang Theory' And Elon Musk?
Elon Musk has done a lot for the world of innovation - however, when it comes to his cameos in the world of Hollywood, he's often criticized. However, his SNL hosting gig did have a decent monologue and one that genuinely made fans laugh.
"I know I sometimes say or post strange things but that's just how my brain works," the billionaire Tesla CEO said, referring to his confounding social media presence. "To anyone I've offended, I just want to say I reinvented electric cars and I'm sending people to Mars on a rocket ship. Did you think I was also going to be a chill, normal dude?"
These days, it seems like Musk has put the acting bug on the back burner, putting his focus on Twitter. “Well I think it’s very important for there to be an inclusive arena for free speech,” Musk said, echoing statements he has made over the past couple weeks. “Twitter has become kind of the de facto town square, so it’s just really important that people have the, both the reality and the perception that they are able to speak freely within the bounds of the law," he stated during his TED interview.
Putting his Twitter interest aside, let's take a look back at Elon's 'Big Bang Theory' cameo and why it was heavily criticized by fans.
Some Labeled Elon's Cameo On 'Big Bang' As Hard To Watch
Elon Musk appeared in season nine, episode nine of 'Big Bang Theory' titled, 'The Platonic Permutation'. His storyline was centered around Howard agreeing to volunteer at the soup kitchen, despite the fact that he was reluctant.
“What are you doing here?!” Howard asks.
“I’m washing dishes … I was on the turkey line, but I got demoted for being too generous with the gravy,” Musk replies.
In the episode, Musk would further speak about how important it was to help those in need, while Howard also quickly would change his tune.
"It feels great to come down here and help the less fortunate, huh?” Musk says.
“Oh, yeah … nothing better than helping people,” Howard says. “Which is something I realized when I was viewing Earth from the deck of the International Space Station, where I spent two months as a payload specialist, a job I was qualified for because I’m an MIT-trained engineer.”
It was a memorable cameo but certainly not the funniest. Let's be honest here, it should not have been given that Musk was playing himself. Nonetheless, fans were harsh when assessing the episode, claiming that 'Big Bang' exaggerated on some of the jokes.
Fans On Reddit Blasted The Cameo Due To The Overuse Of Fake Crowd Noise
On platforms such as Reddit and Quora, fans weren't exactly impressed with the cameo. For the most part, the harshest criticism had to do with Musk's no so funny lines, which were always met with apparent laughs by the studio audience. Clearly, fans weren't buying it.
"I'm washing dishes" laugh track. That's some top shelf comedy right there!"
"I found it to be a bit "empty". Completely detached from the plot, he only interacts with Howard in a very "realistic" way (quite different of Hawkins for instance). Plus you meet him doing volunteering, that feels a bit like a marketing campaign more than a cameo. That said, I hope it's because he will be the center of another episode and this is just the introductory scene."
Others fans weren't as harsh, crediting Musk for his appearance on the show. Others also stated that his cameo on 'Young Sheldon' was much better than his prior work on 'Big Bang'.