The Only Young Sheldon Actors To Appear In Every Episode

“The Big Bang Theory” spin-off “Young Sheldon” overcame the challenges of being an offshoot of a popular show, moving the action to a prequel setting, and even switching the format from multicam to single-camera to the tune of seven seasons and considerable success. “Young Sheldon” chronicles Sheldon Cooper’s (Iain Armitage) path from childhood to Caltech in a manner that leaves room for just about every reference adult Sheldon on “The Big Bang Theory” (Jim Parsons) makes to his formative years. Combining the origin story with a touching family comedy approach proved to be so successful that “Young Sheldon” gave birth to its own spin-off, “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage,” and there’s no telling what the Chuck Lorre-created sitcom universe will come up with next.

With 141 episodes and an almost entirely different cast from “The Big Bang Theory,” “Young Sheldon” provided plenty of work for many sitcom veterans and comparative newcomers — and as you might assume, the characters from Sheldon’s immediate circle make the most appearances. However, only a handful of actors appear in every single episode, and all of their characters share the surname Cooper.

The distinctive honor of appearing in every episode of “Young Sheldon” is shared by Sheldon Cooper actors Armitage and Parsons (who narrates the show), Zoe Perry (who plays Mary Cooper), Lance Barber (George Cooper Sr.), Montana Jordan (Georgie Cooper), and Raegan Revord (Missy Cooper). Barely missing out is Annie Potts, whose Connie “Meemaw” Tucker appears in 139 episodes.

Impressive as a 141-episode run is, “The Big Bang Theory” still stands head and shoulders above “Young Sheldon” at 12 seasons and 280 episodes. However, it’s worth noting that only two “The Big Bang Theory” cast members actually made it in every single episode — namely, Parsons and Johnny Galecki (who played Leonard Hofstadter). Kaley Cuoco (Penny Hofstadter), Simon Helberg (Howard Wolowitz), and Kunal Nayyar (Raj Koothrappali) all miss out the big 280 by a single episode. 

Parsons’ episode count is particularly notable since it makes him the only actor who’s a part of every episode of both “The Big Bang Theory” and “Young Sheldon,” at a combined total of 421 episodes. This should be more than enough to crown the actor as the reigning king of the franchise. His lead is so impressive that, as it stands, the only actor from “The Big Bang Theory” universe who has a theoretical opportunity to catch up is Montana Jordan, whose character appeared in every episode of “Young Sheldon” and remains the only active Cooper thanks to his ongoing adventures on “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage.” With its 11-episode seasons, the show will need to run for “just” 26 seasons for Jordan to catch up with Parsons.