Steve Holland Says Young Sheldon Pay Talks Complicated Spin-Off Returns
The Young Sheldon showrunner says securing fair pay for returning cast in Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage made guest appearances hard to discuss.
Steve Holland, showrunner of Young Sheldon, said that bringing members of the Young Sheldon cast back for the second The Big Bang Theory spin-off required fighting for a budget to pay them fairly, according to comingsoon.net.
Holland said the budget negotiations made it difficult to communicate with the rest of the cast about possible guest appearances in Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage, which follows Montana Jordan and Emily Osment as the title couple.
He also said the team could have handled the situation better. Holland discussed the tensions in Jessica Radloff's book about the series, titled Young Sheldon: The (Juicier-Than-Meemaw's-Brisket) Inside Story of the Hit Comedy.
Annie Potts, who plays Meemaw, disliked the show's ending and how she learned about the spin-off, describing the idea of occasional Cooper family appearances as not a real or generous invitation.
How the spin-off was announced
In a 2023 Zoom meeting, the Young Sheldon cast learned the sitcom would end with its seventh season, and about 10 minutes later Jordan and Osment were told about the spin-off in a separate call from co-creator Chuck Lorre. Other ensemble members only learned about the spin-off through industry gossip after returning to set to film the final season, which aired ahead of Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage moving forward with Jordan and Osment.
Quick answers
What is Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage?
It is the second spin-off of The Big Bang Theory, following Young Sheldon, and centers on Montana Jordan and Emily Osment as the title couple.
Why did returning Young Sheldon cast members' guest appearances become complicated?
Showrunner Steve Holland said the production had to fight for a budget to pay returning cast fairly, which made it hard to communicate with the rest of the cast about possible guest appearances.