The cast of Young Sheldon is facing a great loss.
In Thursday’s penultimate episode of Big Bang Theory prequel, Sheldon’s father George died of a heart attack. It’s an ending Big Bang Theory fans knew what to expect, but that didn’t make things any easier — for the cast or for viewers.
“I had the luxury of emotionally preparing for this for seven years,” Lance Barber, who plays George on the series, told ET during a set visit in March. “That doesn’t stop it from falling strangely on you when you’re in the moments.”
Montana Jordan It is Zoe Perrywho plays Sheldon’s brother, Georgie, and mother, Mary, agreed.
“I don’t know if there’s anyone preparing anyone for this. It’s just going to have to hit you, hit you hard too,” Jordan told ET about George’s death, with Perry adding, “We knew we were going to end it around that time, but figuring out how and it’s still something new for us, I imagine if it’s sad for us, it will be sad for the people who have watched it since the beginning.”
No matter how devastating George’s death, the actor behind Sheldon, Ian Armitagetold ET that not everything is doom and gloom.
“What I love is that the last episode where we see George is a really beautiful and great episode until the last (moment),” he said. “…You barely imagine what’s going to happen, so it’s not like the whole episode is doom and gloom.”
Barber noted that while there will likely be “mixed reactions” to his character’s death, he hopes it is a positive step in the process of closure.
“I hope everyone prepares and uses this as catharsis. I think some people might struggle with it and others will celebrate it,” he said. “I hope that ultimately everyone finds it satisfying in some way that we have enjoyed the beginning, middle and end of a story, and can move on to a new story (in the next spin-off). I think everything is really cool.”
It’s not just George’s death that the cast has to face, but also the end of the series.
“We’ve had some rollercoasters of emotions and some tears, all the appropriate things you would expect after seven years together on this wonderful journey,” Barber told ET, with her on-screen mother-in-law, Annie Potts, agreeing, “It’s going to be a very exciting for us here and for those who watched the show.”
As for what fans will think of the upcoming two-part series finale, which will air May 16 on CBS, Armitage teased, “I hope they don’t hate it.”
“I’m fan of Big Bang Theory and I’m a little biased, but… I really enjoyed it,” he said. “I’m enjoying working on these final episodes, so if I’m taking myself as a metric, I think it’s going to do well. Our writers are great and I trust them completely, so it’s hard for them to get it wrong.”
When it comes to the show’s legacy, Armitage knows exactly how he wants it to be remembered.
“In 20 or 30 years, or maybe 10 or 20 years, I hope that people who watch this show (now, who are) my age or a little older, are watching it with their kids or say, ‘Oh, remember- if’. Young Sheldon? That was funny. I’ve always liked that,'” he told ET. “… I would like it to be a piece of nostalgia and a comfort show.”
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