Young Sheldon Season 3: Iain Armitage on his audition for show, and how he would honour The Big Bang Theory

While The Big Bang Theory reached its end in March this year, there is still lots to know about everyone’s favourite scientist Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons). In its two-season run, Young Sheldon delved into the boy genius’s life (Iain Armitage), who is, to an extent, the black sheep of his family. [caption id=“attachment_7410651” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Iain Armitage as Sheldon Cooper. Image by Monty Brinton/CBS[/caption] Sheldon is somewhat a complex puzzle for his father George Cooper Sr (Lance Barber), his siblings George Jr (Montan Jordan) and Missy (Raegan Revord), with whom he seems to share no mutual interests. His mother Mary (Zoe Perry), on the other hand, is painfully patient and deeply supportive in every step of the way. Season 2 concluded with Sheldon tuning into the announcement of Nobel Prize winners in Physics, an award he ultimately takes home as an adult. Navigating through the ’80s as a child prodigy was a tough task, but portraying one onscreen is no cakewalk either. The 11-year-old Armitage, in a conversation with Firstpost, discussed his experience of immortalising Sheldon onscreen. Besides portraying the titular role in Young Sheldon, Armitage has appeared as Ziggy Chapman in HBO’s Big Little Lies , and even worked in theatre, which he admits will “always hold a special place in my heart.” Armitage’s audition demanded him to memorise a three-page long monologue. “I got a callback, which was great, and Jim Parsons, Steve Molaro, and Chuck Lorre were all there, and I just did my thing. When we were getting on the flight to go back to Virginia, we got a call that I had gotten the part, and I thought, ‘Why are we going on this flight then?’” [caption id=“attachment_7410661” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Image by Sonja Flemming/CBS[/caption] Parsons, who now serves as the executive producer of the spin-off, helped him slip into character. To help prepare for the role, he has seen a few clips from The Big Bang Theory but not the entire show, which he says is not appropriate for someone his age. Switching characters from Ziggy to Sheldon has been easy. He shares that his mother, Lee, a theatre producer, often guides him. “I love everything about him. I just love playing him because there are so many funny and fun things I get to do,” adds the actor. Maintaining a deadpan expression while delivering some dialogues has not been difficult for him, but “there are some scenes where I keep cracking up, and cannot stop.” Talking about the differences and similarities between him and Sheldon, Armitage says, “We both love our moms, we both love science, and we both have some weird little quirks.” Drawing while getting ready for action on set is a activity he loves to indulge, he adds. As for carrying forward the legacy of The Big Bang Theory is concerned, he says, “I feel really glad that people love our show, and will continue to watch it, now that Big Bang has ended.” When asked if he has any advice for child actors or actors of all ages, Armitage says, “Always be kind and courteous to everyone, and don’t forget to use ‘sirs’ and ‘ma’ams’, ‘please’, and ‘thank you’. Try to always have a good work ethic, listen to your director, and try not to get a big head about things.” Young Sheldon Season 3 airs on Comedy Central India from 27 September.