Why Jim Parsons Thought He Was A Mediocre Producer On Young Sheldon

In the canon of successful TV spin-offs, we must now always mention “Young Sheldon.” Taking place in the same universe of “The Big Bang Theory,” the sitcom focused on a young Sheldon Cooper growing up in Texas long before he became the man audiences knew, as portrayed by Jim Parsons. When it came time to give his character new life through a younger lens, Parsons was directly involved not only as the show’s narrator, but as an executive producer as well. But while he is relatively confident as an actor, Parsons didn’t have that same confidence as a producer.

In a 2017 interview with CBS News, Parsons sat down with “Young Sheldon” star Iain Armitage to discuss the show, as well as their relationship. Parsons very much mentored Armitage to help him become the young Sheldon Cooper. But when asked specifically about being an executive producer, Parsons wasn’t shy about his feelings.

“I’m very mediocre at it,” Parsons replied, although Armitage quickly interjected and disagreed, saying, “Not true.” Speaking a bit further. Parsons elaborated on his new position and explained why it had been a challenge for him. What it came down to is that he didn’t want to tell another actor how to do their job:

“It’s very strange and it’s taken a lot to get used to, even talking to another actor, in this case, Iain. I’ve never been someone comfortable giving another actor direction. I don’t know what makes any other actor tick, necessarily, and I don’t want to break it, or him!”

“I’m not that fragile. I’m fragile, but not that fragile,” Armitage commented. Parsons then agreed, replying, “No, you’re not actually.”

For what it’s worth, everything worked out regardless of Parsons’ feelings about himself as a producer. “Young Sheldon” ran for seven seasons on CBS before concluding its run in May 2024. That’s a whopping 141 episodes, for those keeping track. It’s not as many as the 12 seasons and 279 episodes as “Big Bang Theory,” but to say that the spin-off had anything shy of a resoundingly successful run would be unfair.

Parsons largely allowed Armitage to put his own stamp on Sheldon Cooper, even from the beginning. Yes, we know the old Sheldon, which Armitage referred to as “big Sheldon” in the interview, but this was a very different version of the character. Parsons spoke a bit about that, explaining that watching the younger Sheldon discover everything he loves would keep the show running:

“It really is its own character. What you’re seeing is how he became what we see in the adult show, and so this is kind of its own creature that [Iain’s] portraying here. There are overlaps, but we watch him discover things, like comic books, and his clothes are going to change style as he goes through this. All the things that you associate with Sheldon now, you see how they got there through him.”

Even though he only served as the narrator for the vast majority of the show, Parsons did appear as Sheldon Cooper in the “Young Sheldon” series finale. He helped finish what he started, with Armitage now able to build a career after a very successful seven-year run on a hit show. Everyone won out. So it might be hard, with the benefit of hindsight, to agree that Parsons is a bad producer.

“Young Sheldon” is streaming now on Max, or you can grab your favorite season on Blu-ray/DVD via Amazon. Solana Token Creator