Mayim Bialik Talks Playing Herself in ‘Night Court’ Reunion with ‘Big Bang Theory’ Co-Star Melissa Rauch (Exclusive)

Amy and Bernadette are together again!

Mayim Bialik reunites with her Big Bang Theory co-star Melissa Rauch on an episode of Night Court airing this Tuesday, Jan. 14, on NBC. Fans can expect lots of in-jokes about Big Bang and Blossom as the iconic TV star plays a bizarre version of herself. Rauch’s character, Judge Abby Stone, will fangirl over Bialik until their unexpected friendship takes a black comedy turn.

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In an exclusive interview, Bialik gave Parade the scoop about how much fun they had being TV co-stars again.

Speaking on Zoom after her California home briefly lost power during the devastating wildfires (as she revealed via Instagram), Bialik told Parade, “Melissa has done this amazing thing with rebooting Night Court. And so I was just happy for her as her friend. I did notice she [previously] had Kunal [Nayyar] from Big Bang Theory on. And I was wondering, 'When is it going to be my turn?' She finally called me and was like, ‘Hey, would you consider coming on?’ and asked if I would kind of play a twisted version of myself. So super happy to do that, support her, and get to see her in her executive producer role.”

She added, “Melissa has an incredibly brilliant mind for comedy as a writer and a performer. But it’s more just about the way her brain works, the way her brain clicks into motion.”

Related: Everything to Know About Night Court Season 2

Rauch previously gushed to Parade.com about Bialik’s guest shot, and now the hotly-anticipated episode is here. As viewers know, John Larroquette co-stars with Rauch on the new Night Court, reprising his role as Dan Fielding from the original show which ran from 1984-92. And Bialik has a connection to him, too!

“I played John Larroquette’s daughter on The John Larroquette Show at the time that I was on Blossom. So [it was] really lovely to also get to reunite with him,” she said. “I hadn’t really kept in touch with John. At the time that we worked together, there were no cell phones, texting wasn’t a thing. And I was a teenager and he was a grown-up. So it was very special to connect with him [on Night Court]. I’ve always respected him so greatly as an actor.”

Bialik noted of playing a version of herself, “It’s easy not to have to worry about a backstory when you’re playing yourself. And I think there’s also something fun. People like to see celebrity guests being playful and poking fun at themselves. As a viewer myself, I like when people poke fun at themselves. I think it helps people break that allure of like, ‘Ooh, what would the celebrity be like? Are they going to be standoffish?’ So it was really fun to get to not care so much about what people think of this character and just have a good time with it.”

Bialik promises that fans tuning into Night Court on Tuesday night will see how the “episode is full of meta references, to the Big Bang Theory, to Blossom, real life.” Coming to set felt like a homecoming, as her and Rauch spent years together acting on Big Bang until the show ended in 2019.

“Melissa and I have stayed in touch as friends over the years. But working together and getting to be on stage together was very different, and felt very comfortable,” she said. “It feels like a long time since Big Bang Theory ended. But this made it feel like it hadn’t been that long. When you work with someone like this, you’re learning their rhythms and their preferences and how they want to create. And so it was really fun to be on a stage with her again.”

Bialik raved, “The atmosphere on the Night Court set is very playful. Melissa has created a really fun environment. A lot of the crew that Melissa works with I worked with on Call Me Kat, which was the show I did after Big Bang Theory. So I knew a lot of the crew. It’s a very light [and] fun set. I haven’t been on a set also without having to deal with COVID. When we did Call Me Kat, it was during COVID times. And so this was really nice not to work with masks.”

Related: The Original Cast of Night Court: Then and Now

Talking about her relationship with Rauch, Bialik told Parade, “Melissa and I worked together for almost a decade. When I started on Big Bang Theory in the fourth season, she was also made a regular on the fourth season. So we kind of joined at the same time and had a similar sort of experience of being the new kids on the block. I had two kids when Big Bang Theory started. Melissa became a mom during Big Bang Theory. So we sort of got to be young moms together of little kids. It’s just been a joy to see her grow as a producer, as a creator. I am supportive of all the things she does.I feel we have an enduring friendship which is really important to me.”

When asked what Rauch loves most about her, Bialik smiled, “I answer texts very promptly. I am an available friend to her.”

Mom of two sons Bialik also told Parade that Rauch “has seen my boys grow. Before my older one went to college, we got together so they could see each other, and she could see that he’s significantly taller than both of us, now!”

These days, Bialik spends most of her time on her podcast, Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown. In it, she has bravely spoken out about having obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) since childhood.

“A huge part of my life is trying to break down myths and misperceptions about mental illness and also encourage people to understand aspects of body and mind wellness,” Bialik told Parade about her podcast, which is expanding and has 60 million downloads.

She continues, “As the world becomes more and more complicated, I think people are experiencing things about them becoming more prominent, and whether the election went the way you thought it would or the way you didn’t think it would. It’s definitely going to be a lot of transition, and so for a lot of us who struggle with anxiety, with OCD, those things are definitely creeping up. So there are a lot of challenges. But we can hopefully] raise a generation of kids who collectively are more in touch with their feelings and can process all of this.”

As an example, Bialik said the podcast will soon discuss how people can cope after the horrifying California fires burned whole neighborhoods to the ground. In the meantime, she's providing an antidote in a different way, returning to a familiar setting alongside a familiar face on Night Court.

Related: 'Night Court' Star Melissa Rauch Teases 'Big Bang' Reunion With Mayim Bialik (Exclusive)