Every Young Sheldon Character Ranked Worst To Best

"Young Sheldon" has been a popular staple of CBS's lineup for six seasons. Created by Chuck Lorre and Steven Molaro, it's a spinoff of Lorre and Bill Prady's "The Big Bang Theory," tracing socially inept theoretical physicist Sheldon Cooper's (Jim Parsons) childhood in Medford, Texas. Parsons provides narration for the series, which has grown a fanbase almost as massive as "The Big Bang Theory."

Iain Armitage plays young Sheldon Cooper, an exceptionally gifted child who enters high school when he's just nine years old. Although a genius at math and physics, he's completely adrift when it comes to social interactions, and he's often condescending and rude to those around him. This puts him at odds with his family: devoutly Christian mom Mary (Zoe Perry), football coach dad George (Lance Barber), goofball older brother Georgie (Montana Jordan), twin sister Missy (Raegan Revord), and brash grandmother Connie aka Meemaw (Annie Potts). Yet they can't help but love the little Einstein, whose prickly demeanor masks a greater vulnerability.

The world of "Young Sheldon" has grown so vast as to include a slew of side characters that have become fan favorites, including Sheldon's nebbishy physics professor Dr. John Nesbitt (Wallace Shawn), Georgie's much-older girlfriend Mandy McAllister (Emily Osment), and town preacher Jeff Difford (Matt Hobby). Here's our countdown of "Young Sheldon's" 15 best characters, ranked worst to best. 

Mandy McAllister showed up as a recurring character in the fifth season, later becoming a series regular. As played by Emily Osment, she's Georgie Cooper's (Montana Jordan) much older girlfriend-turned-baby-momma. From her very first appearance, Mandy has annoyed and delighted fans in almost equal measure, both for her eyebrow-raising age difference with Georgie and her whiplash-inducing feelings about their relationship.

From the moment they meet at the laundromat in "A Lock-In, a Weather Girl and a Disgusting Habit," Mandy and Georgie have an instant connection, so much so that they both lie about their ages — she claims she's 25 when she's 29, he says he's 21 when he's actually only 17. By the time the truth about their actual age difference is discovered, Georgie has gotten Mandy pregnant and she's moved in with the Coopers after her own family disowns her. Even though they've decided to raise their child together, Mandy doesn't want to be romantically involved with Georgie, encouraging him to date girls his own age.

Yet she can't help but feel attracted to him, and her fluctuating emotions have left some viewers exasperated. On the other hand, many fans find their will-they-won't-they dynamic to be a series highlight.

Whether it's on "Better Call Saul," "Arrested Development," or "Portlandia," it's always fun whenever Ed Begley Jr. shows up on television screens. The seven-time Emmy nominee joined "Young Sheldon" as a recurring cast member in Season 2, playing Dr. Grant Linkletter. Much like his colleague, Dr. John Sturgis (Wallace Shawn), Dr. Linkletter is a physics professor at East Texas Tech, the university where Sheldon (Iain Armitage) starts taking courses at a very young age. And, also like Dr. Sturgis, Dr. Linkletter is interested in more than just Sheldon's education: Namely, he's got his eye on the pint-sized freshman's Meemaw, Connie (Annie Potts).

In the third season episode "A Broom Closet and Satan's Monopoly Board," Sheldon must sit in on Dr. Linkletter's physics class while Dr. Sturgis recovers from a recent stay in the psychiatric institution. Although the precocious pupil often gets on his nerves, the good doctor is instantly charmed by his Meemaw, Connie (Annie Potts), and starts looking for excuses to be around her. By Season 6, Dr. Linkletter has finally convinced Connie to go on a date with him, treating her to some Polynesian margaritas in "Future Worf and the Margarita of the South Pacific" (needless to say, it doesn't go well).

Every protagonist needs an antagonist, and for Sheldon Cooper, that's neighborhood bully Billy Sparks (Wyatt McClure). For Sheldon's mother Mary, it's Billy's mom, Brenda Sparks (Melissa Peterman). Yet as in Sheldon's relationship with Billy, Mary and Brenda eventually become friends, finding a shared bond over raising weird kids in a small town. It just goes to show that no one can be a villain for too long in the world of "Young Sheldon."

Brenda manages the local bowling alley the Coopers like to frequent. Her tart tongue and hair-trigger temper put her at odds with most of the customers, although Connie has a soft spot for her. The same can't be said for her husband, garage shop owner Hershel Sparks (Billy Gardell), who divorces her. (A convenient plot twist, considering Gardell was cast as the lead of another Chuck Lorre sitcom, "Bob Hearts Abishola," the same year he left "Young Sheldon.") Brenda grows closer to the Cooper family after her husband leaves her, even getting Mary a job at the bowling alley. At the same time, however, she begins a flirtation with George Cooper (Lance Barber) that could end disastrously for both families.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that Sheldon Cooper was bullied as a child. As an adult, Sheldon still carried the wounds inflicted by his nemesis Billy Sparks, so much so that he included him on his all-time enemies list. In "Young Sheldon," Billy (Wyatt McClure) starts off as a bully, but quickly becomes friendly with Sheldon, leading fans to question Sheldon's definition of "bullying."

Billy lives in Sheldon's neighborhood, and the two are introduced at the behest of Sheldon's mom, who fears her eccentric son might have trouble making friends. Billy tries to introduce Sheldon to his pet chicken, which goes about as well as you'd expect. Yet the two grow closer, and Sheldon eventually helps the sweet but slow-witted Billy with his math homework so he can finally pass the sixth grade (having repeated it several times). Billy also falls in love with Sheldon's twin sister, Missy (Reagan Revord), who doesn't exactly reciprocate his affections (although there's reason to believe the two will eventually marry and divorce).

Given Sheldon's painful memories of Billy on "The Big Bang Theory," his friendly demeanor on "Young Sheldon" has come as a surprise to viewers. In fact, many fans felt sympathy for him when Missy rejected him in the fifth season episode "Stuffed Animals and a Sweet Southern Syzygy."

Jerry O'Connell made two appearances in "The Big Bang Theory" as Sheldon's estranged older brother, Georgie Cooper (he also played their dad in flashbacks in the Season 12 installment "The Tam Turbulence"). In the Season 11 episode "The Sibling Realignment," we learn that Georgie resents his younger brother for going off to college while he stayed at home to take care of their mother and sister after their father died. The two make up, and Georgie attends Sheldon's wedding. In "Young Sheldon," Georgie is played as a teenager by Montana Jordan.

The eldest child in the Cooper household, Georgie isn't exactly pleased to be starting high school alongside his much younger, much smarter brother. He also doesn't like the outsized amount of attention Sheldon receives from their parents, a sticking point that bonds him with their sister, Missy (Raegan Revord). Georgie isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, which makes him the butt of the Cooper family's jokes. Eventually, he falls in love with the much-older Mandy McAllister (Emily Osment), gets her pregnant, and drops out of school to start his family (as we later find out in "The Big Bang Theory," his lack of a high school diploma doesn't affect his ability to start a successful tire company chain).

Anyone familiar with Sheldon Cooper's life story knows the end is in sight for his father, George Cooper Sr. On "The Big Bang Theory," Sheldon (Jim Parsons) says his dad died in 1994, when Sheldon was just 14 years old. That's a shame, because he's become a fan favorite on "Young Sheldon." Despite adult Sheldon's description of his old man as an abusive lout, he's portrayed as a pretty loving and supportive guy in the prequel series (although there's still time for that to change).

George Cooper Sr. couldn't be more different from his genius son, Sheldon: a Vietnam veteran and former star athlete, George is the head football coach at Medford High, where his sons Sheldon and Georgie attend. Although his mother-in-law Connie often jokes that he might not be Sheldon's biological father, that doesn't stop him from loving his eccentric son to the best of his abilities. Yet there's trouble brewing in the Cooper household, starting when George loses his job and begins a flirtatious relationship with his newly divorced neighbor Brenda Sparks (Melissa Peterman). This causes understandable strife between him and his wife, Mary. Given adult Sheldon's recollection of his father's affairs, it seems as though things are about to get a lot worse.

Laurie Metcalf made 14 appearances as Sheldon Cooper's mother, Mary Cooper, on "The Big Bang Theory," earning an Emmy nomination for the Season 9 episode "The Convergence Convergence." When it came time to cast a younger version of the role for "Young Sheldon," the producers didn't have to look far. They found a perfect surrogate in Metcalf's real-life daughter, Zoe Perry, and it's a testament to her abilities as an actress that she's been able to do more than just recreate her famous mother's performance. In many ways, Perry has made the role her own.

Much like her husband George, Mary struggles to understand her genius son, yet loves him to the best of her abilities. That's easier said than done, since Sheldon's atheism is at odds with her devout Christianity. Mary's faith informs every decision she makes about raising her children, including trying to restrict Sheldon from playing "Dungeons and Dragons" because it feels slightly satanic. She works as a secretary at the church, yet she's abandoned by the congregation when Pastor Jeff asks her to take a leave of absence due to some family problems. Her world is further shaken by the suspicion that her husband is cheating on her with their neighbor, Brenda Sparks.