'Big Bang Theory' spinoff 'Stuart Fails to Save the Universe' headed to HBO Max

"The Big Bang Theory" lives on again, but this time on streaming: HBO Max ordered the third spinoff of the long-running sitcom Wednesday, officially making "Big Bang" (2007-19) among the most productive spinoff factories in TV history.

The show, titled "Stuart Fails to Save the Universe," will star series regulars and semi-regulars Kevin Sussman, Lauren Lapkus, Brian Posehn and John Ross Bowie. The logline, according to the streamer: "Comic book store owner Stuart Bloom (Sussman) is tasked with restoring reality after he breaks a device built by Sheldon and Leonard, accidentally bringing about a multiverse Armageddon." HBO Max added, "Along the way, they meet alternate-universe versions of characters we’ve come to know and love from 'The Big Bang Theory.' As the title implies, things don’t go well."

Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) and Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki) are not part of the new series, although that logline also implies cameos. Original showrunners Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady will, however, return for this one. No launch date was announced.

Unlike the show's other spinoffs — "Young Sheldon," technically a prequel, and "Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage," both from CBS — this will go straight to streaming. (HBO Max made the announcement on the day it changed its name from "Max" back to the original "HBO Max.")

Some other sitcom factories: "Happy Days" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," which had three spinoffs each, and "All in the Family" with four.