Seventeen years after the premiere of “The Big Bang Theory,” Jim Parsons is returning to play the iconic role of Sheldon Cooper on “Young Sheldon.” CBS dropped the first look images for Parsons and Mayim Bialik, who plays Amy Farrah Fowler, ahead of the “Young Sheldon” finale.
The images show Sheldon (Parsons) looking at his computer as his wife Amy (Bialik) looks over his shoulder. A second image shows Parsons smiling to himself as he starts to close his laptop. The last time Parsons and Bialik appeared in these roles was in 2019 during the series finale of “The Big Bang Theory.”
The final episode of “Young Sheldon” will premiere on CBS May 16 at 8 p.m. ET/PT and will be available to stream on Paramount+. Subscribers who have Paramount+ with Showtime will be able to watch live and on-demand, while Paramount+ Essential subscribers will be able to stream the episode the day after it airs.
In addition to serving as an executive producer on “Young Sheldon,” Parsons has served as the series’ narrator over its seven seasons. Bialik has also appeared in a voiceover for two episodes of the series. However, the finale will mark the first on-camera return of these characters.
“Young Sheldon” has been a consistent ratings winner for CBS, just like “The Big Bang Theory” before it. The series premiered as the No. 1 new comedy of the 2017-2018 television season and grew to become the No. 1 comedy during the 2019-2020 season after the finale of its predecessor. In its final season, the series remains the No. 1 comedy on primetime broadcast. When accounting for 35 days of viewing across all platforms, Season 7 has delivered 12.9 million viewers across linear and streaming, a 19% increase compared to last year.
Though “Young Sheldon” may be coming to an end, the greater “Big Bang Theory” universe will continue to live on. In January of 2024, CBS announced a second Chuck Lorre spinoff. Titled “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage,” the series comes from Lorre, Steven Molaro and Steve Holland and will follow the lives of Sheldon’s older brother George “Georgie” Cooper Jr. (Montana Jordan), his wife Amanda “Mandy” McAllister (Emily Osment) and their baby daughter CeeCee. The series is set to premiere on CBS in the fall of 2024.
