Young Sheldon

**Young Sheldon** is an American comedy television series created by Chuck Lorre and Steven Molaro for CBS. The series is a spin-off prequel to *The Big Bang Theory* and begins with the character Sheldon Cooper at the age of nine, living with his family in East Texas and going to high school. Iain Armitage stars as young Sheldon, alongside Zoe Perry, Lance Barber, Montana Jordan, Raegan Revord, and Annie Potts.

The series was added on August 31, 2020.

## **Premise**

*Young Sheldon* follows Sheldon Cooper as a young boy attending high school in the fictional town of Medford, Texas. As a nine years old boy (in the first season) attending high school, he tries to fit into a world full of people, including his own family and friends, who do not quite know how to deal with his unique intellectual capabilities and social ineptitude

## **Production**

### Development

In November 2016, it was reported that CBS was in negotiations to create a spin-off of The Big Bang Theory centered on Sheldon Cooper as a young boy. The prequel series, described as "a *Malcolm in the Middle*-esque single-camera family comedy" would be executive produced by The Big Bang Theory co-creator Chuck Lorre and producer Steven Molaro, with The Big Bang Theory co-creator Bill Prady expected to be involved in some capacity, and intended to air in the 2017–18 season alongside The Big Bang Theory.

The initial idea for the series came from Jim Parsons (who portrays the older Sheldon on The Big Bang Theory), who passed it along to The Big Bang Theory producers. On March 13, 2017, CBS ordered the spin-off *Young Sheldon* series, which was created by Lorre and Molaro. Jon Favreau directed and executive produced the pilot. Parsons, Lorre, Molaro and Todd Spiewak also serve as executive producers on the series, for Chuck Lorre Productions, Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television. On September 27, 2017, CBS picked up the series for a full season of 22 episodes. On January 6, 2018, the show was renewed for a second season, which premiered on September 24 of that same year.

On February 22, 2019, CBS renewed the series for both a third and a fourth season. The third season premiered on September 26, 2019. Warner Bros. Television suspended production on March 13, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving the third season with only 21 episodes. At the time of the suspension, production had already begun on the 22nd episode of the season in which Sheldon would have graduated high school. Series co-creator Steven Molaro speculated that scenes already shot for the 22nd episode could be used in the first episode of Season 4.

### Casting

In early March 2017, Iain Armitage was cast as the younger Sheldon, as well as Zoe Perry as his mother, Mary Cooper. Perry is the real-life daughter of Laurie Metcalf, who portrays Mary Cooper on The Big Bang Theory. Lance Barber stars as George Cooper Sr., Sheldon's father; he had previously appeared in one episode of The Big Bang Theory. Raegon Revord stars as Missy Cooper, Sheldon's twin sister; Revord getting the part only after repeatedly asking her mother to be allowed to read for the role. Also starring Montana Jordan as George Cooper Jr., Sheldon's older brother. Jim Parsons reprises his role as adult Sheldon Cooper, as narrator for the series. In July 2017, Annie Potts was cast as Meemaw, Sheldon's grandmother.

### Release

Young Sheldon began airing weekly episodes on CBS from November 2, 2017, after episodes (reruns) of *The Big Bang Theory*. It premiered as a special preview on September 25, 2017.

In May 2020, it was announced that the first three seasons of the series would stream on HBO Max; no release date was announced at that time, as the series remains available on CBS' titular streaming service, *CBS All Access*.

## **Trivia**

* Jim Parsons, who portrays the adult Sheldon Cooper on *The Big Bang Theory*, narrates the series and serves as an executive producer.
* The show's title sequence is played to the song "Mighty Little Man" by Steve Burns. The song is the first track in Burns' 2003 album Songs for Dustmites.
	+ The title sequence was changed in Season 3 to include the entire Cooper family. Prior to Season 3, the title sequence only showed Sheldon.
	+ Along with adding the entire Cooper family, Season 3 also made some of the opening sequences unique by having Sheldon dress up in different costumes for different episodes