Back in August it was announced that the long-running CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory is set to come to an end with its upcoming twelfth season after Jim Parsons turned down a bumper $50 million offer to continue in the role of Sheldon Cooper.
Well, with the final season now reaching its midway point, Parsons has been explaining to Entertainment Weekly why he felt it was the right time to say goodbye to the beloved series and his Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning role.
“It’s both as complex and as simple as just feeling innately that it was time,” said Parsons. “It speaks to a lot of things, none of them bad. There is no negative reason to stop doing Big Bang. It felt like we have been able to do this for so many years now, it doesn’t feel like there is anything left on the table. Not that we couldn’t keep doing it, but it feels like we’ve chewed all the meat off this bone. I guess at a personal level, it feels like the right time in my life.”
“I don’t know what’s next for me,” he continued. “It’s not like there is something specific I am aiming for. I’m firmly in my middle age now. I don’t know how much longer I can wear [the T-shirts] without looking really long in the tooth. In a way, it’s exciting. What is this next chapter of life? What is this next chapter for all of us? It will be very, very sad when it does end, even knowing [I am] okay with it. People are okay when they graduate but there are frequently tears at graduation. It’s hard to say goodbye to people that you have worked with for so long.”
The Big Bang Theory airs on CBS on Thursday nights and sees Parsons starring alongside Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar, Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch.
