Hannah Montana's best friend, a secretary who's not impressed by ghosts, and Mr. Incredible
himself. If the cast of "Young Sheldon" looks familiar, there's a good reason why.
The star of "Young Sheldon," Iain Armitage was only nine years old when the prequel
series premiered in September of 2017. But believe it or not,
this wasn’t the first time he appeared in front of the camera. Years before the series,
Armitage made a name for himself on YouTube, running his channel "Iain Loves Theatre,"
where he hosted a series of reviews of stage plays and musicals like "Hamilton."
"One of the most tremendous, amazing, fantastic - Better than fantastic shows ever!"
Gaining some level of notoriety thanks to his YouTube series, Armitage made his unintentional
TV debut in an episode of "Impractical Jokers," before getting official casting calls. His
first came in an episode of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," ahead of snagging roles in a string
of 2017 indie films. This includes "The Last Castle," "Our Souls at Night" and "I'm Not Here"
While starring on "Young Sheldon," Armitage has had a recurring role
as Ziggy Chapman on "Big Little Lies" and has even
done voiceover work for cartoons like "Scoob!" and "Paw Patrol: The Movie."
Playing Sheldon's father George Cooper Sr. is actor Lance Barber. Oddly enough, he actually made
a previous appearance on "The Big Bang Theory" as a peer of Sheldon's in a Season 5 episode. He
must have impressed producers, because several years later he re-appeared as Sheldon's dad.
Barber's very first TV role came in an episode of "ER," and he quickly made a career as a
guest starring actor across a number of big name productions. This includes appearances in episodes
of "Gilmore Girls," "Californication," and the detective comedy "Monk." In 2005, Barber joined
a show's main cast for the first time, playing Paulie in the Lisa Kudrow sitcom "The Comeback."
If you recognize Barber from anywhere though, it's probably his recurring
role as Bill Ponderosa in "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia."
"How is drinking a glass of milk going to loosen me up Bill?"
"I-I spiked the milk with methylenedioxypyrovalerone."
"What?"
"It's bath salts."
Every family sitcom needs a great mom, and "Young Sheldon" has Zoe Perry as
Mary Cooper. Perry can actually trace her TV career all the way back to the 1990s,
when she played Jackie Harris in a pair of episodes of "Roseanne" that revisited
the youth of its title character. This is doubly ironic, because the older version
of Jackie was played in that series by Laurie Metcalf, who also plays the older version of
Mary Cooper on "The Big Bang Theory." Oh, did we mention that Metcalf is Perry’s actual mother?
Perry would have to wait more than a decade before her next TV appearance, which came in a
2006 episode of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent." She seemed to find a niche in legal dramas,
though, popping up for single-story parts on "Cold Case," "Deception," and
"Conviction" over the next few years, before landing a recurring role on "The Family."
Just before starring on "Young Sheldon," Perry had closed out a nine-episode stint
as political spoiler Samantha Ruland on "Scandal."
To play the role of Grandma Cooper — better known as Meemaw — "Young Sheldon" enlisted
the services of '80s icon Annie Potts, who fans will probably recognize from her role in the 1984
classic "Ghostbusters," where she played cynical receptionist Janine Melnitz. She'd come back to
reprise the role in 2021 for the legacy sequel, "Ghostbusters: Afterlife," too. In between,
of course, Potts had a long and successful career, both on TV and at the movies.
In cinemas, you might know Potts from movies like "Pretty in Pink" or the cult classic
Whoopi Goldberg comedy "Jumpin' Jack Flash." On TV, Potts starred for four seasons on "Any
Day Now" between 1998 and 2002, before landing a recurring role on "Joan of Arcadia" in 2004.
Other recurring TV parts saw Potts appearing in four episodes of "Law & Order: SVU" and five
episodes of "Chicago Med," while she also had a role on the short-lived Leslie Bibb comedy "GCB."
In addition to doing work for cartoons like the 2020 reboot of "The Rocketeer"
and "Johnny Bravo," Potts might be best known as the voice of Bo Peep in the "Toy Story" franchise.
"What do you say I get someone else to watch the sheep tonight?"
"Oh Yeah, right."
While he's appeared in every episode of "Young Sheldon," as well as a single flashback episode
of "The Big Bang Theory," Montana Jordan's part as George Jr. is actually one of just two
on-screen roles in his career, so it's not likely that you'd recognize him from anywhere else.
His other role, though, comes in the film "The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter,"
a 2018 Netflix movie from writer-director Jody Hill. The film stars Josh Brolin as
a hunter named Buck Ferguson who brings his friend and cameraman Don on a weekend sojourn
into the woods with his son Jaden. Montana, of course, plays Jaden, and while the movie
didn't garner many positive reviews, its cast is often cited as one of its few bright spots.
Unlike her co-star and on-screen brother Montana Jordan, Raegan Revord's resume stretches back a
bit further beyond "Young Sheldon," beginning in 2014, when she was just six years old.
That year, she made her television debut in an episode of “Modern Family,” and would go
on to reprise that role a season later. In 2015, she appeared in an episode of the Netflix series
"W/ Bob and David," a revival of sorts of Bob Odenkirk and David Cross' '90s cable comedy
"Mr. Show with Bob and David." From there, Revord showed up alongside Lily Tomlin and
Jane Fonda on Netflix's "Grace and Frankie," as well as on the similarly-titled "Alexa & Katie."
Annie Potts isn't the only "Toy Story" alum to have a major role on "Young Sheldon."
The other is Wallace Shawn, who plays Meemaw's boyfriend, Dr. Sturgis. Shawn,
a veteran character actor with an unmistakable nasally voice, gives life to the ever-frightened
Rex in the "Toy Story" films. If you're a child of the '80s, though, you probably know Shawn
best for his role as the villainous Vizzini, in the Rob Reiner classic, "The Princess Bride."
"He didn't fall?! Inconceivable!"
"You keep using that word - I do not think it means what you think it means."
Children of the '90s, however, remember Shawn as the lovelorn Mr. Hall,
in "Clueless." He returned to the role again for the "Clueless" sitcom spin-off,
which aired for three seasons. Sci-fi fans will remember Shawn best for his
recurring role on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," where he played the cantankerous
Grand Nagus Zek. Teens in the 2000s might know Shawn from his stint on "Gossip Girl."
Other memorable roles in his career include
runs on "Crossing Jordan," "The Cosby Show," and "Murphy Brown."
Of all of the cast of the series, Ed Begley Jr. might have one of the longest and most
prolific filmographies, which begins all the way back in the 1960s, with his acting debut in an
episode of "My Three Sons." Over the decades, he's accumulated more than 300 credited roles,
but we can try to give you a brief overview of some of his most important work.
After shooting to stardom with his leading role on the '80s medical drama
"St. Elsewhere," Begley Jr. spent the next few decades appearing in various hit shows
and movies, including "The Love Boat," "Roseanne," and "3rd Rock From the Sun."
In the 2000s, Begley Jr. continued playing doctor roles, on "7th Heaven" as Dr. Hastings
and on "Kingdom Hospital" as Dr. Jesse James. He also had the memorable role
of Stan Sitwell on "Arrested Development." Though we can't possibly rattle off every
part he's ever played, we couldn't let his bio be complete without mentioning
his role as Hiram Gunderson on the critically acclaimed "Six Feet Under."
Pastor Jeff often serves as the foil for "Young Sheldon," engaging the scientifically-minded
Sheldon in some surprisingly hard-hitting discussions on science versus religion.
Playing the quasi-villain on the show is actor Matt Hobby, who appeared on HBO's acclaimed period
crime drama "Boardwalk Empire," with a recurring role in Season 3 as Phillip. A few years later,
he took a part in The CW drama "Hart of Dixie," and not long before he debuted
on "Young Sheldon," Hobby held a role on the Rob Lowe comedy "The Grinder."
To most kids, the phys ed teacher was either the nicest member of the faculty or the meanest,
and fortunately for Sheldon, Wayne Wilkins is the former, the friendly and affable school
coach. In fact, Wilkins takes center stage in his own story, dealing with the breakdown of
his marriage while leaning on his friend George Cooper Sr. for support. He's played by Doc Farrow,
a journeyman actor who counts Wilkins as his first ever recurring role on television.
Prior to the series, Farrow had only ever appeared in single episodes of other shows,
starting out playing mostly unnamed background characters. Since appearing
on "Young Sheldon," he's also popped up in small roles on "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and
"Arrested Development," as well as in an episode of the revival of "Will & Grace."
On "Young Sheldon," Melisa Peterman plays the role of nosy neighbor Brenda Sparks, the mother
of Billy and Bobby who works at the local bowling alley. She's played by Melissa Peterman, who made
her acting debut back in 1996 as a background character in the Coen Brothers classic "Fargo."
Despite her cinematic beginnings, Peterman's career has been almost entirely on television,
beginning with an episode of "Just Shoot Me" in 2000. If you recognize her, though,
it's probably from her starring role in the long-running family sitcom "Reba" with Reba
McIntire, where she played the religious Barbra Jean Hart. If you watch country music game shows,
though, it's almost certain that you know her as the host of "The Singing
Bee," a competition that tossed together elements of karaoke and spelling bee.
From there, Peterman became a fill-in host or celebrity guest on the game show circuit,
so you might recognize her from episodes of "Home & Family" and "The
$100,000 Pyramid," or "Dancing Fools," just to name a few.
"Young Sheldon" has recruited its fair share of '80s stars, but there's still one more:
Craig T. Nelson, who plays Dale Ballard. Owner of the local sporting goods store,
Ballard is also Missy Cooper's baseball coach — an appropriate role, considering
Nelson is easily best known for playing the title character on the '90s classic sitcom "Coach."
Prior to "Coach," Nelson had recurring roles on "Private Benjamin" and was part of the
main cast of the crime drama "Chicago Story" in the '80s. Beyond that stretch of success on TV,
though, Nelson has also had plenty of hits at the movies. He starred in classics like
"Poltergeist," "Action Jackson," and "Turner and Hooch" in the '80s. Following his run
on "Coach," Nelson appeared in "The Devil's Advocate" with Keanu Reeves.
But while many audiences may recognize Nelson's face from one of his many famous
films or popular TV shows, it's also his voice that might stand out to you. That's because in
"The Incredibles" and its sequel, Nelson played Bob Parr, Mr. Incredible himself.
"Young Sheldon" has seen its share of surprising breakout recurring guest stars,
and audiences were introduced to another in Season 5 with the arrival of Mandy,
the older woman who George Jr. becomes smitten with. She's played by Emily Osment,
sister of former child actor and "Sixth Sense" star Haley Joel Osment.
Starting her career the same year that "The Sixth Sense" premiered, Osment's first acting job was in
the film "The Secret Life of Girls," though it's more likely you'd recognize her from her role as
Gerti Giggles in the second and third "Spy Kids" movies. But her biggest role by far began in 2006,
when she starred alongside Miley Cyrus on Disney's iconic series "Hanna Montana" as best friend Lilly
Truscott. From there, Osment moved to more serious fare, starring in the Crackle thriller "Cleaners"
in 2013, while also doing voice work for cartoons like "Kick Buttkowski and "Rainbow Brite."
More recently, Osment has had starring roles on a pair of short-lived dramas,
"Almost Family" and "Pretty Smart," as well as a recurring part on Michael Douglas' "The Kominsky
Method." If you were a kid in the late 2000s, though, you might also know Osment for her music,
as she released an album in 2010, and shot a number of music videos to accompany it.