Sheldon Cooper

Not to be confused with Sheldyn Cooper.
Sheldon Cooper
The Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon character
Jim Parsons as adult Sheldon Cooper (left) and Iain Armitage as young Sheldon Cooper (right)
First appearanceThe Big Bang Theory:
"Pilot" (2007)
Last appearanceYoung Sheldon:
"Memoir" (2024)
Created byChuck Lorre
Bill Prady
Portrayed byJim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)
Iain Armitage (Young Sheldon)[1]
Voiced byJim Parsons (narration; Young Sheldon)
In-universe information
Full nameSheldon Lee Cooper
AliasSheldor the Conqueror (online gamertag)
Sheldor (game username)
NicknamesShelly (family)
Shelly Bean (when Sheldon was acting as his mother)
Moon Pie (from grandmother)
GenderMale
TitleDoctor
Occupation
FamilyGeorge Cooper Sr. (father; deceased)
Mary Cooper (mother)
George "Georgie" Cooper Jr. (brother)
Missy Cooper (twin sister)
Spouse
​
(m. 2018)​
ChildrenLeonard[2]
Unnamed daughter[3]
Relatives
  • Charlie Tucker (grandfather; deceased)
  • Connie Tucker (grandmother)
  • 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)
  • Constance "CeeCee" Cooper (niece)
OriginGalveston, Texas
NationalityAmerican
Birth dateFebruary 26, 1980

Sheldon Lee Cooper,[4][5] Ph.D., Sc.D.,[6] is a fictional character and one of the main protagonists 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).[7] 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 Missy Cooper, George Cooper Sr., George Cooper Jr., Mary Cooper and his grandmother, Connie Tucker, 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).[8]

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.[9][10][11][12] Some viewers have asserted that Sheldon's personality is consistent with autism spectrum disorder (or what used to be classified as Asperger's Syndrome).[11][13] Co-creator Bill Prady has stated that Sheldon's character was neither conceived nor developed with regard to Asperger's,[13] although Parsons has said that in his opinion, Sheldon "couldn't display more facets" of Asperger's syndrome.[14]

  1. ^ "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.
  2. ^ 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.
  3. ^ "Memoir". Young Sheldon. May 16, 2024. CBS.
  4. ^ "The Inspiration Deprivation". CBS. April 18, 2019. Archived from the original on May 22, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  5. ^ "The Jerusalem Duality". The Big Bang Theory. Season 1. Episode 12. April 14, 2008. CBS.
  6. ^ "The Love Car Displacement". The Big Bang Theory. Season 4. Episode 13. January 20, 2011. 16:39 minutes in. CBS.
  7. ^ 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.
  8. ^ "The Veracity Elasticity". The Big Bang Theory. Season 10. Episode 7. October 17, 2016. CBS.
  9. ^ "The Big Bang Theory: Season 1 Review". IGN. May 27, 2007. Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved January 13, 2010.
  10. ^ "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.
  11. ^ a b "The Griffin Equivalency". The A.V. Club. October 13, 2008. Archived from the original on September 10, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference EW2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ a b Waldman, 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.
  14. ^ Collins, Paul (February 6, 2009). "Is the world ready for an Asperger's sitcom?". Slate Magazine. Retrieved January 7, 2024.