Fictional character in The Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon
Fictional character
Sheldon Lee Cooper
The Big Bang Theory/Young Sheldon character
Jim Parsons as adult Sheldon Cooper (left) and Iain Armitage as young Sheldon Cooper (right)
First appearance
The Big Bang Theory:
"Pilot" (2007)
Created by
Chuck Lorre Bill Prady
Portrayed by
Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) Iain Armitage (Young Sheldon)[1]
Voiced by
Jim Parsons (Narration; Young Sheldon)
In-universe information
Full name
Sheldon Lee Cooper
Alias
Sheldor The Conqueror (online gamertag)
Nicknames
Shelly (family) Shelly Bean (when Sheldon was acting as his mother) Moon Pie (from grandmother)
Gender
Male
Title
Doctor
Occupation
The Big Bang Theory:
Theoretical physicist
Young Sheldon:
Student
Family
George Cooper Sr. (father; deceased as of The Big Bang Theory) Mary Cooper (mother) George "Georgie" Cooper Jr (brother) Missy Cooper (twin sister)
Spouse
Amy Farrah Fowler
Children
Leonard[2] at least one other (according to Young Sheldon narrations)[3]
Relatives
Charlie Tucker (grandfather; deceased)
Connie Tucker (grandmother)[4]
Edward Tucker (uncle)
Charlene Tucker (aunt)
Carl Tucker (uncle; deceased)
Ruth Cooper (aunt; deceased)
Marion (aunt)
Roger (uncle)
Unnamed uncle
John (great-grandfather)
Rose (great-grandmother)
Thomas (granduncle)
Betty (first cousin twice removed)
Origin
Galveston, Texas
Nationality
American
Birth date
February 26, 1980
Sheldon Lee Cooper,[5][6] Ph.D., Sc.D.,[7] is a fictional character in the CBS television series The Big Bang Theory and its spinoff series Young Sheldon, portrayed by actors Jim Parsons and Iain Armitage respectively (with Parsons as the latter series' narrator).[8] For his portrayal, Parsons won four Primetime Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, a TCA Award, and two Critics' Choice Television Awards. The character's childhood is the focus of Young Sheldon, in which he grows up in East Texas with his family as a child prodigy.
The adult Sheldon is a senior theoretical physicist at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), and for the first ten seasons of The Big Bang Theory shares an apartment with his colleague and best friend, Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki); they are also friends and coworkers with Howard Wolowitz (Simon Helberg) and Rajesh Koothrappali (Kunal Nayyar). In season 10, Sheldon moves across the hall with his girlfriend Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik), in the former apartment of Leonard's wife Penny (Kaley Cuoco).[9]
He has a genius-level IQ of 187. In The Big Bang Theory, it is said that his and Leonard's IQs add up to 360, meaning Leonard has an IQ of 173. In Young Sheldon Season 7 Episode 7, when Sheldon was studying at home and was commanded to answer the phone, he became annoyed and stated that he is treated like a receptionist at home, despite having an IQ of 187, directly confirming the number. However, he displays a fundamental lack of social skills, a tenuous understanding of humor (always ending with "bazinga"), and difficulty recognizing irony and sarcasm in other people, although he himself often employs them. He exhibits highly idiosyncratic behavior and a general lack of humility, empathy, and toleration. These characteristics provide the majority of the humor involving him, which are credited with making him the show's breakout character.[10][11][12][13] Some viewers have asserted that Sheldon's personality is consistent with autism spectrum disorder (or what used to be classified as Asperger's Syndrome).[12][14] Co-creator Bill Prady has stated that Sheldon's character was neither conceived nor developed with regard to Asperger's,[14] although Parsons has said that in his opinion, Sheldon "couldn't display more facets" of Asperger's syndrome.[15]
^"Get Ready To Meet Young Sheldon, A Hilarious New Spinoff Of The Big Bang Theory - CBS.com". CBS. Archived from the original on June 7, 2017. Retrieved May 7, 2017.
^Lewis, Isobel (November 9, 2020). "Big Bang Theory: Sheldon and Amy's baby name is revealed on Young Sheldon". The Independent. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
^"Young Sheldon Revealed Something Huge About Sheldon's Future". TV Guide. May 10, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
^Young Sheldon episode "Jiu-Jitsu, Bubble Wrap, and Yoo-Hoo"
^"The Inspiration Deprivation". CBS. April 18, 2019. Archived from the original on May 22, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
^"The Jerusalem Duality". The Big Bang Theory. Season 1. Episode 12. April 14, 2008. CBS.
^"The Love Car Displacement". The Big Bang Theory. Season 4. Episode 13. January 20, 2011. 16:39 minutes in. CBS.
^Andreeva, Nellie (March 2, 2017). "'Big Bang' Sheldon Spinoff Inches Closer With Iain Armitage & Zoe Perry Castings". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 13, 2017.
^"The Veracity Elasticity". The Big Bang Theory. Season 10. Episode 7. October 17, 2016. CBS.
^"The Big Bang Theory: Season 1 Review". IGN. May 27, 2007. Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved January 13, 2010.
^"Oak Park native finally gets the girl in 'Big Bang'". Chicago Tribune. January 11, 2010. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2010.
^ ab"The Griffin Equivalency". The A.V. Club. October 13, 2008. Archived from the original on September 10, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
^Cite error: The named reference EW2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abWaldman, Allison (August 14, 2009). "Come up with a new theory: Sheldon does not have Asperger's". aoltv.com. Archived from the original on May 23, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
^Collins, Paul (February 6, 2009). "Is the world ready for an Asperger's sitcom?". Slate Magazine. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
Sheldon Lee Cooper, Ph.D., Sc.D., is a fictional character in the CBS television series The Big Bang Theory and its spinoff series Young Sheldon, portrayed...
Stephen Hawking appear in cameo roles as themselves. Young Sheldon initially centers on SheldonCooper at the age of nine, going to high school and living with...
prequel to The Big Bang Theory and chronicles the life of the character SheldonCooper as a child living with his family in East Texas. Iain Armitage stars...
2008) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as SheldonCooper in Young Sheldon, a spin-off prequel to The Big Bang Theory. He has also voiced...
living in Pasadena, California: Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki) and SheldonCooper (Jim Parsons), both physicists at Caltech, who share an apartment; Penny...
1973) is an American actor and producer. From 2007 to 2019, he played SheldonCooper in the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory. He has received various awards...
is an American actor. He is known for playing George Cooper, Sr. on the CBS sitcom Young Sheldon (2017–2024), as well as Bill Ponderosa on the FX show...
Theory, portrayed by Mayim Bialik. Amy is a neuroscientist who is SheldonCooper's (Jim Parsons) love interest and subsequent wife in the series. She...
series Cobra Kai. She is also known as playing the adult version of SheldonCooper's twin sister, Missy, in The Big Bang Theory. Born in Phillipsburg, New...
an American actress. She has appeared as the young Mary Cooper in the CBS sitcom Young Sheldon (a role originated by her mother Laurie Metcalf in the show's...
an American actor. He is best known for his role as Georgie Cooper in the Young Sheldon (2017–2024), The Big Bang Theory (2018), and the upcoming Georgie...
physicist who shares an apartment with colleague and best friend, Dr. SheldonCooper. For his portrayal, Galecki was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award...
Sheldon Leonard Bershad (February 22, 1907 – January 11, 1997) was an American film and television actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. Sheldon...
character who has been to the International Space Station. Along with SheldonCooper, Leonard Hofstadter, and Raj Koothrappali, Howard is part of the central...
of four main male characters in the show, alongside Howard Wolowitz, SheldonCooper, and Leonard Hofstadter, to appear in every episode of The Big Bang...
Theory, Leonard Hofstadter compares SheldonCooper to an elephant seal pup who steals milk because Hofstadter feels Cooper is getting all the attention from...
originally asked to play the role of SheldonCooper, but he felt he was better suited for the role of Leonard, and Sheldon's role was eventually given to Jim...
Outstanding Multi-Camera Picture Editing For A Comedy Series. Jim Parsons (SheldonCooper) was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for "The...
lives across the hall from physicists Dr. Leonard Hofstadter and Dr. SheldonCooper. Prior to the 2010–2011 season, she earned US$60,000 an episode for...
Brazil. It is named after the catchphrase of the fictional character Dr. SheldonCooper from the television show The Big Bang Theory. It was previously misidentified...
Switzerland. The character SheldonCooper, featured in the CBS comedy The Big Bang Theory, is named in part after Leon Cooper. Fellow of the American Physical...
"Soft Kitty" is a children's song, popularized by the characters Sheldon and Penny in the American sitcom The Big Bang Theory, and which elsewhere may...
Theory with co-creator Bill Prady. It follows two genius physicists, SheldonCooper and Leonard Hofstadter, with few social skills who befriend their neighbor...
CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, in which he interviews Star Trek fan SheldonCooper (Jim Parsons) for the documentary on his father (who had previously...