HBO Max has formally greenlit the series Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, the first ‘Big Bang Theory’ spinoff series exclusively airing on the streaming service.

The comedy will center on comic book shop owner Stuart Bloom (Kevin Sussman), who had a heavily recurring role on the original CBS series. Lauren Lapkus, Brian Posehn and John Ross Bowie also will reprise their roles on Stuart Fails to Save the Universe.

The spinoff show comes from Big Bang Theory co-creators Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady and Zak Penn, and will feature a heavy dose of sci-fi alongside its comedy. In the original series, Stuart breaks one of physicists Sheldon and Leonard’s devices opening a multiverse; the spinoff series finds Stuart (Sussman), girlfriend Denise (Lapkus), geologist Bert (Posehn) and quantum physicist Barry Kripke (Bowie) having to save our original reality. Along the way, the show promises to introduce multiverse incarnation of Big Bang favorites.

Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max Content, shared: “We’re excited to be continuing the legacy of The Big Bang Theory. Much like the original series, this new chapter wouldn’t be possible without the vision and storytelling brilliance of Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, as well as Zak Penn, who has brought fresh insight and a distinctive voice to an already exceptional creative team.”

Lorre adds: “I wanted to do something radical that would take me out of my comfort zone. Something the characters on ‘The Big Bang Theory’ would have loved, hated, and argued about.”

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