The news that The Big Bang Theory’s finale, Young Sheldon went back in time to explore the early life of the show’s breakout character. The spinoff changed the entire premise as Young Sheldon was a single-camera family sitcom whereas The Big Bang Theory was a multi-camera hang-out show.

As if this weren’t unusual enough, Young Sheldon’s finale left off, Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage dropped Young Sheldon’s single-camera approach in favor of The Big Bang Theory’s traditional multi-camera sitcom style. As such, viewers could have been forgiven for assuming that The Big Bang Theory would never receive a conventional spinoff at this rate. However, October 2024 saw Deadline report that a spinoff of Big Bang Theory was in the "Early stage of development" at Max, with some ing stars returning.

The Big Bang Theory's Main Characters Missing Stuart's Spinoff Would Raise Big Questions

Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, Raj, Bernadette, Amy, and Penny Must Appear

Max’s streaming spinoff is set to focus on Kevin Sussman’s Stuart, the comic book store owner who was also a friend of The Big Bang Theory’s central gang. Stuart was one of the most important characters in the series after the central group of Leonard, Penny, Raj, Howard, Bernadette, Sheldon, and Amy. However, he isn’t the only ing star who is in talks to return. Brian Posehn, who played the dull geologist Bert Kibbler, is also attached to the project. Improv icon Lauren Lapkus is also rumored to reprise her role as Stuart’s quirky girlfriend Denise, the store’s assistant manager.

Some of The Big Bang Theory’s best moments happened in the store and Stuart was central to the lives of the show’s heroes,

This sounds promising, but the setting of the spinoff immediately raises an obvious issue. The Big Bang Theory’s spinoff can't take place in the comic book store without bringing back the original heroes, since the shop was effectively a second home to them. Some of The Big Bang Theory’s best moments happened in the store and Stuart was central to the lives of the show’s heroes, even living in the Wolowitz house for an extended period. As a result, it would be bizarre if the new show didn’t feature frequent cameos from Kaley Cuoco, Jim Parsons, and Johnny Galecki.

The Big Bang Theory's Main Characters Would Risk Making Stuart's Spinoff Into Season 13

The Gang’s Return Would Easily Overshadow Stuart’s New Show

However, this creates another, bigger issue for the Max series. The Big Bang Theory’s spinoff can’t bring back its original heroes without overshadowing its new leads, so the main gang can’t appear without the new show effectively becoming a continuation of the original series. The Big Bang Theory’s cast were some of the highest-paid actors on television when the show ended in 2019, meaning their return would hardly be a minor playful cameo. Any appearance by the core seven stars would immediately become the most notable thing about the Max spinoff, which could cause another problem.

The Big Bang Theory's original run included 279 episodes across 12 seasons.

If an appearance from The Big Bang Theory’s Amy and Sheldon immediately gave the spinoff endless publicity and attention from fans, then there would inevitably be a temptation to involve the original cast more heavily in the new series. If the cast were happy to reprise their original roles, the show could soon end up becoming a sequel series instead of a spinoff. While That ‘70s Show faced a similar issue with its iconic original cast, the generation gap between the original heroes and the protagonists meant That ‘70s Show’s lead actors couldn’t lead That ‘90s Show.

How The Big Bang Theory's Stuart Spinoff Can Get The Balance Of Its Characters Right

Occasional Cameos Could Keep TBBT Fans Happy

The Big Bang Theory’s spinoff doesn’t have the same luxury as That ‘90s Show, since it hasn’t been decades since the original series ended and the new heroes aren’t separated from the original stars by an entire generation. On the contrary, Stuart was close friends with The Big Bang Theory’s heroes, so they really should appear in the new series for the sake of consistency. This will make it tricky for the show to find a way to get viewers as invested in its new characters as they are in The Big Bang Theory’s returning cast .

One way to do this would be to only include cameos from The Big Bang Theory’s characters when they visit the comic book store. That way, viewers could meet Sheldon and Amy’s daughter or get some solid proof that Leonard was still alive and well, but Stuart, Denise, and Bert would still get the lion’s share of the screen time and story focus. Keeping original cast cameos limited to scenes set at the comic book store could ensure that The Big Bang Theory’s original gang still plays a part in the show, but doesn’t end up dominating its action.

Source: Deadline