Poised for her first nomination, Cuoco stars on EW’s bonus Emmys cover and teases what’s coming next on her HBO Max hit.

If you think it’s hard being an alcoholic flight attendant who wakes up next to a dead body in Bangkok with no idea what happened the night before, try being the actress playing that character on TV. “There were nights where I would go into my apartment in New York and cry. Like, ‘Oh my God, everyone’s going to hate this,'” says Kaley Cuoco of her anxiety while filming and executive-producing The Flight Attendant in 2019. “It was a lot of up-and-down emotions, because this project lived or died with me.”

Not only did The Flight Attendant live, the darkly comic thriller soared. After premiering on Thanksgiving 2020, the HBO Max series based on Chris Bohjalian’s 2018 novel racked up stellar reviews and a season 2 renewal (set to debut in spring 2022). Next came a wave of accolades for the Big Bang Theory alum, who masterfully balanced her character’s own whirlwind of emotions, from wild panic to deeply rooted shame. “I felt like I played 10 different women. I played the fun best friend. I played the sister. I played a girl who has serious trauma,” she says of Cassie. “It was an actor’s dream.”

You can read the full interview with Cuoco – she reveals which actor’s audition made her cry, explains why the show is moving to Los Angeles, and talks about making the most out of this virtual awards season – when EW’s July issue (featuring this bonus Emmys cover) hits stands on June 18. In the meantime, perhaps these teases about The Flight Attendant season 2 will tide you over.

1. Is Cassie going to join the CIA?
Though Shane (Griffin Matthews) hinted at a CIA gig for Cassie in the season finale, Cuoco says, “this is not all of a sudden going to be Cassie is a superspy. I think there will be a little bit of the CIA-asset stuff, on the side.”

2. We know he’s dead, but will Alex (Michiel Huisman) be back?
“I don’t think he will,” says Cuoco. But the “mind palace” – the elaborate, all-in-Cassie’s-head setting where she and Alex spent time together – will return: “Cassie is going to have to face some of her own demons in the mind palace, especially now trying to stay sober.”

3. With Cassie moving to L.A., will we still see her best friend Annie (Zosia Mamet) and her brother Davey (T.R. Knight)?
“I think we want [Annie] to come out and maybe look at some L.A. law firms so she can be near Cassie,” says Cuoco. As for Davey, “he is going to follow her to L.A. because he’s concerned about her sobriety, [but] we are going to find out that he’s trying to escape some of his own issues.”