Getty Actor Jim Parsons, winner of the Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Award for 'The Big Bang Theory' poses in the press room during the 65th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on September 22, 2013.
The series finale of The Big Bang Theory airs tonight, ending the hit sitcom after 12 seasons. According to The Hollywood Reporter, it is currently the longest-running and highest rated multi-camera series in television history.
The finale will air on CBS, the network which has been home to the series since its pilot episode in 2007. Although episodes of the sitcom are usually only 30 minutes long, TV Guide’s schedule indicates that the finale episode will run from 8/7pm c until 9:01/8:01pm c. It will be followed by a new half-hour episode of Young Sheldon.
According to TV Guide, the official synopsis for the finale episode, entitled “The Stockholm Syndrome,” reads “In the series finale, Bernadette and Wolowitz leave their kids for the first time; Penny and Leonard try to keep a secret; Sheldon and Amy stick together; and Koothrappali makes a new friend, as the gang travels together into an uncharted future.”
Millions will tune in tonight to witness #BigBangTheory history in the making. Will you be one of them?
A big factor for the showrunners when deciding to conclude the show after 12 seasons was lead actor Jim Parson’s desired exit from the show. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Jim Parson (who has starred as Sheldon since the start of the series), revealed that he had a thought that he might not want to continue the show after his season 12 contract was up, and that that led to his decision to move on from the show. He went on, saying:
“There was no factor; there was no situation that I was like, ‘Well, I’ve had enough of that.’ No. There was nothing like that. It was just…when you know, you know. And you’re susceptible and thrown around by the whims of your own existence and getting to a certain age and your life changes and suddenly you just think different,” Parsons continued. “It has been fascinating to think about who I was 12 years ago. And sometimes when I have trouble learning a line or saying a line of Sheldon’s right now, it’s hard to know why specifically. But it’s like, you’re not the same person you were. There is a possibility that this actually became more difficult for you in a way. And I don’t know what that means but it’s like you just change.”
Although The Big Bang Theory is coming to an end, CBS will continue airing new episodes of Young Sheldon, which follows the story of Jim Parson’s character’s childhood. He is the narrator and an executive producer on that comedy. TV Line reported in February that the prequel series, starring Iain Armitage as the title character, was renewed by CBS for seasons 3 and 4.
According to IMDb, in its twelve seasons, The Big Bang Theory had a total of 68 wins and 236 nominations, including 1 Golden Globe Award and 11 Primetime Emmy Awards.
Tune in to the series finale of The Big Bang Theory, tonight at 8/7c on CBS.