CBS
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
"Young Sheldon" was a ratings hit that thrived on CBS for seven seasons and ended on a high note. Much of the series' success hinged on Iain Armitage's performance as the titular young Sheldon; the star perfectly sells that this precocious child will grow up to be Jim Parsons' Sheldon in "The Big Bang Theory." Creators Chuck Lorre and Steven Molaro understood that the show needed the right actor for a young Sheldon spin-off to even work, which is why they almost threw in the towel when at first they couldn't find one.
"If we couldn't find somebody astonishing, we wouldn't do the show," Lorre told People. "We'd just call CBS and say, 'Never mind,' because this whole thing hinged on finding somebody who is a unicorn." They finally found their unicorn with Armitage's audition tape, in which the 8-year-old successfully memorized a two-page monologue filled with technical jargon, a task so complicated that Lorre doubted any child could pull it off. As Lorre recalled in a 2018 interview with Channel 4, "We looked at [Armitage's tape] and went, 'Oh my God. We can't possibly be this lucky.' He was just spectacular."
Chuck Lorre described Iain Armitage's acting abilities as a 'miracle' in his memoir
CBS
Chuck Lorre's new memoir "Sitcom" released on October 13, 2026, and details his experience on the many shows he's created over the years. In the book, he revealed that when he and Steven Molaro pitched the idea for "Young Sheldon," CBS greenlit it right away. The show's parent series, "The Big Bang Theory," was such a massive success that a prequel series about its standout character seemed like a no-brainer.
The kind words toward Armitage in Lorre's memoir match up nicely with what Jim Parsons has had to say about the young actor. Parsons was also involved in the prequel's casting process, and described Armitage in their first meeting as "very open and receptive ... excited to see people." Speaking to Channel 4, he explained, "We recorded him on video in a more official way to send, I guess, to CBS or whatever it was. And he was wonderful."
Lorre also told Channel 4 that the child-heavy cast on "Young Sheldon" was a first for his live-action sitcoms. The young cast encouraged him and Molaro to move the prequel series to a single camera format with no laugh track. "It seemed like the more appropriate way for [the kids] to get the best work, to do the best work, was in a closed setting where they had the time to develop these characters," Lorre said. Following the end of the series, Iain Armitage appeared in one episode of "Ghosts."
