<P> Kaley Christine Cuoco ( / ˈkeɪli ˈkwoʊkoʊ / KAY - lee KWOH - koh ; born November 30 , 1985 ) is an American actress . After a series of supporting film and television roles in the late 1990s , she landed her breakthrough role as Bridget Hennessy on the ABC sitcom 8 Simple Rules , on which she starred from 2002 to 2005 . Thereafter , Cuoco appeared as Billie Jenkins on the final season of the television series Charmed ( 2005 -- 2006 ) . Since 2007 , she has starred as Penny on the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory , for which she has received Satellite , Critics ' Choice , and People 's Choice Awards . Cuoco 's film work includes roles in To Be Fat like Me ( 2007 ) , Hop ( 2011 ) and Authors Anonymous ( 2014 ) . She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014 . In October 2017 , Cuoco founded Yes , Norman Productions . </P>
who is the actress that plays penny on the big bang theory
Kaley Christine Cuoco