About Young Sheldon
Young Sheldon was a single-camera prequel to The Big Bang Theory which ran from 2017 to 2024. Created by Chuck Lorre and Steven Molaro, Young Sheldon followed the early life of Sheldon Cooper growing up with his family in East Texas.
Young Sheldon ran for seven seasons and produced 141 episodes.
Cast
Iain Armitage (Big Little Lies) stars as nine-year-old Sheldon Cooper, who is leaving his twin sister's class behind to jump ahead to high school. Zoe Perry, the real-life daughter of Laurie Metcalf who portrays Mary Cooper on The Big Bang Theory, stars as Sheldon's mother. Lance Barber, who previously guest starred on The Big Bang Theory in an unrelated role, plays Sheldon's father, George Sr. Raegan Revord stars as Sheldon's twin sister, Missy, and Montana Jordan plays Sheldon's older brother, George Jr.
Annie Potts (Ghostbusters, Designing Women) joined the show in July 2017 as a series regular, starring as Sheldon's beloved grandmother, or "Meemaw". Her character is described as a foul-mouthed, hard-drinking Texan grandmother who is highly supportive of her grandson's intellect. Meemaw was widowed in 1985 when Sheldon's grandfather, or "Pop-Pop", passed away.
Jim Parsons narrates the series as adult Sheldon.
Crew
Young Sheldon was created by The Big Bang Theory co-creator and executive producer Chuck Lorre and executive producer Steven Molaro. Chuck Lorre, Steven Molaro, Jim Parsons and Todd Spiewak will serve as executive producers on the show, which is produced by Chuck Lorre Productions, Inc. in association with Warner Bros. Television.
In August 2017, it was announced that Steven Molaro had left his role as showrunner on The Big Bang Theory to take the same role overseeing production on Young Sheldon. Iron Man and Elf director Jon Favreau directed the pilot episode of Young Sheldon.
Development
Jim Parsons approached The Big Bang Theory's producers with an idea for a show about a young boy genius, an idea that came to him after observing his own smart nephew. The idea turned into an origin story for The Big Bang Theory's Sheldon Cooper, extending the backstory of his childhood in East Texas which has often been retold on The Big Bang Theory.
In November 2016, press reports indicated CBS was in negotiations for a The Big Bang Theory spin-off focusing on a young Sheldon Cooper. In March 2017, Iain Armitage was cast as Sheldon and Zoe Perry as his mother, Mary. CBS officially ordered Young Sheldon to series in March 2017.
Broadcast History
CBS aired the special debut of Young Sheldon on Monday, September 25, 2017. Just two days after the series premiere, CBS gave the show a full-season order of twenty-two episodes. Young Sheldon returned Thursday, November 2, 2017 at 8:30/7:30c, following The Big Bang Theory as it moved back to Thursday nights. The first season finale aired Thursday, May 10, 2018.
In January 2018, CBS renewed Young Sheldon for a second season in the 2018/19 season. The second season of Young Sheldon premiered with a special broadcast on Monday, September 24, 2018 and moved back to Thursday nights on September 27. The second season finale aired Thursday, May 16, 2019, following the series finale of The Big Bang Theory.
In February 2019, CBS ordered another two seasons of Young Sheldon, taking the show through to its fourth season in 2020/21. At its Upfront presentation in May 2019, CBS announced that Young Sheldon would inherit the Thursday 8/7c time slot from The Big Bang Theory for the 2019/20 season. In June 2019, CBS announced that Young Sheldon would return for its third season on Thursday, September 26.
The third season premiere of Young Sheldon aired on CBS on Thursday, September 26 in its new 8/7c time slot. Production was cut short on the third season due to the coronavirus pandemic. The show produced 21 episodes, instead of the originally planned 22. The third season finale aired Thursday, April 30, 2020.
On August 26, 2020, CBS confirmed that its fall line-up, including the fourth season of Young Sheldon, would be not premiere in September due to production delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic. On October 13, 2020, CBS announced that the fourth season of Young Sheldon would premiere November 5, 2020. The fourth season featured eighteen episodes with the season finale airing May 13, 2021.
In March 2021, CBS renewed Young Sheldon for another three seasons, taking the show through to its seventh season in 2023/24. The fifth season featured twenty-two episodes which aired between October 7, 2021 and May 19, 2022.
The sixth season of Young Sheldon featured twenty-two episodes, with the season premiere airing September 29, 2022 and an hour-long season finale airing May 18, 2023. Production on the seventh season of Young Sheldon was delayed, along with other scripted shows, by the 2023 writer and actor strikes in Hollywood.
In November 2023, following the resolution of the writers’ and actors’ strikes, CBS announced that Young Sheldon would end with its seventh season. Because of the delayed start to production following the strikes, the seventh season consisted of 14 episodes. The final season premiered Thursday, February 15, 2024 and the hour-long series finale aired on May 16.
Syndication
In August 2020, Warner Bros. TV and ViacomCBS announced Young Sheldon will join Nickelodeon's Nick at Nite line-up in November. The cable network will broadcast the first three seasons of the show, with the fourth season arriving in 2021.
Streaming
In May 2020, WarnerMedia announced that its recently-launched HBO Max service had won the streaming rights to Young Sheldon in the United States. HBO Max is also the exclusive streaming home of The Big Bang Theory in the United States. Neither show had previously been licensed to a streaming service in the United States. The fifth season of Young Sheldon began streaming on HBO Max on September 7, 2022.
International Broadcast
Young Sheldon airs on CTV in Canada alongside The Big Bang Theory. Warner Channel airs Young Sheldon across Latin America and in Brazil, while Warner TV airs Young Sheldon in Asia. Young Sheldon started airing in Germany on ProSieben on January 8, 2018.
Young Sheldon has aired on E4 in the United Kingdom since February 2018. The first three seasons of Young Sheldon have been available to sream on Netflix in the U.K. since November 2021.
Georgie and Mandy spin-off
In January 2024, it was reported a new Young Sheldon spin-off, focused on Georgie and Mandy, was in development at CBS. Montana Jordan and Emily Osment would return as Georgie Cooper and Mandy McAllister in the new multi-camera sitcom. By March, CBS had ordered the yet-to-be-titled show to series for the 2024/25 season.
In May 2024, CBS revealed its fall line-up for the 2024/25 season. It announced a new spin-off titled Georgie and Mandy's First Marriage, which will take over Young Sheldon's Thursday 8/7c time slot in the fall. Later that month, Will Sasso and Rachel Bay Jones joined the cast, reprising their roles as Mandy’s parents, Jim and Audrey McAllister.
This page has been updated up to episode 714 Memoir