The Big Bang Theory Boss Reveals Secrets of the Proposal

She said yes!

The Big Bang Theory's Season 11 premiere revealed Amy's (Mayim Bialik) affirmative answer to Sheldon's (Jim Parsons) marriage proposal. It was the answer we were expecting, but the way we got it was a little unexpected. And if you weren't paying close attention, you may have missed that we never actually heard Amy say yes at all, only learned it secondhand when Sheldon called Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco) back to report the good news.

The Big Bang Theory showrunner Steve Holland told TV Guide that they wrote Amy saying yes first, but decided it would be funnier to have Sheldon say it over the phone.

"It seemed like a little bit of a fun tease when he hangs up to ask her again that you don't even see him do it, you have to stay with Leonard and Penny while they wait for the answer, like the audience," Holland said.

During the episode's taping, they experimented with how long to draw out the pause. "We had one version where they waited for awhile. They look at each other, they nod, one of them walks back to the fridge to get a drink and then the phone rings," he said. "But ultimately the super quick phone call back seemed the funniest version of it."

He also revealed that the overwhelming response from the studio audience was even more overwhelming in real life. The audience is so packed with Big Bang Theory superfans that seeing this moment made them lose it.

"What you saw, we cut down the audience response in the episode by about half," he said.

What did you think of The Big Bang Theory's Season 11 premiere?

The Big Bang Theory airs Mondays at 8/7c on CBS.

(Full disclosure: TV Guide is owned by CBS.)