All the Big Bang Theory cameos on Young Sheldon so far

The Big Bang Theory last aired on our screens in 2019 and it’s crazy to think about how much time has passed since we said goodbye to the fun comedy. While it’s not exactly the same, it is wonderful that we’re still able to live in that world through Young Sheldon!

The prequel series may focus on the physicist’s upbringing and his family, but it also has many Easter Eggs from the original show like Sheldon’s car games and his love for Professor Proton. The younger version of the character also visits Caltech, his future spot of employment and where all The Big Bang Theory guys work, for the first time in Young Sheldon season 3.

The CBS series is narrated by the adult Sheldon we all know from the original series, Jim Parsons. It was such a clever way to keep those OG fans invested, while providing easy opportunities for some cameos. Young Sheldon has been able to bring in some very special people we all know and love. And of course, they’re very special to Sheldon as well. While The Big Bang Theory cast hasn’t made any in person appearances (even Parsons hasn’t), we’ve gotten some fun cameos thanks to the power of voiceover. Those are:

• Kaley Cuoco (as bacteria in a dream, not Penny)
• Mayim Bialik as Amy (twice!)
• Simon Helberg as Howard

Need a reminder as to when we heard from the lovely Big Bang actors on the show and what nuggets of information they provided to us fans? We’ve got a guide and the details for you below!

What we’ve learned from the BBT voice cameos on Young Sheldon

Throughout its six season-run so far, Young Sheldon has brought in a total of four voiceover cameos from its flagship series. Two of those were from his wonderful wife Amy, which we’ll get to in a sec!

Kaley Cuoco (but not as Penny)

The very first person to lend their voice was Kaley Cuoco, who played Penny on The Big Bang Theory. In her role, she wasn’t “playing” her character though. In season 3 episode 10, “Teenager Soup and a Little Ball of Fib.” Sheldon is having a nightmare about an upcoming swim test in gym class. The bacteria-infested pool begins to “speak” to him with a familiar voice any The Big Bang Theory fan would recognize! And that’s Cuoco’s of course. While she didn’t lend her voice as Penny, it was still a very cool Easter Egg for us fans of TBBT.

Mayim Bialik as Amy

A short time after in the season 4 premiere, “Graduation”,  Mayim Bialik reprised her role as Amy through voiceover. There’s two major surprises revealed in that episode. First, is actually hearing from Amy. And the second – the couple ends up naming their son Leonard! The two squabble back and forth about the name, say I love you, and that’s how the episode ends. Talk about a jaw dropping moment! And while Sheldon says he wanted to name him Leonard Nimoy Cooper, I think we all know which Leonard he actually named him after.

We get to hear from Amy once again on Young Sheldon season 5, episode 16, “A Suitcase Full of Cash and a Yellow Clown Car.” Sheldon starts the episode off talking about relationships. So he invites his lovely and smart wife Amy to help him during his narration. And yes Sheldon, I agree with Amy. Your money should definitely be going toward a college fund for your children instead of comic books!

Simon Helberg as Howard

It’s no secret that engineering is like an enemy for Sheldon, and he despises it so much that he’d make fun of Howard so many times. In the seventh episode of the fifth season, “An Introduction to Engineering and a Glob of Hair Gel,” we get an explanation why. And who better to kick off the episode other than our favorite engineer, Howard? Simon Helberg’s voice makes an appearance to start it off! Throughout the story’s plot we see that engineering was kind of a hard subject for the kid genius, and his professor was a tough one. And it’s not just the audience who figures out Sheldon’s hatred for engineering. At the end of the episode, we hear Howard again asking “all this time, that’s your problem with engineering?” Poor Howard.

A sweet easter egg

We’re going to go back to the Young Sheldon season 2 finale, which coincided with The Big Bang Theory series finale. As if the end of the original series didn’t already pull on our heartstrings, the prequel series took it a step further. In “A Swedish Science Thing and the Equation for Toast,” a young Sheldon throws a party to listen on who won the Nobel Prize in Physics that year. Though nobody shows up. He may have been alone then, but that definitely wasn’t the case when he and Amy won it years later! What was really special about the end of the episode though is that the camera pans to younger versions of all those special people in Sheldon’s life – Leonard, Penny, Howard, Bernadette, Raj, and Amy!

Voice cameos we  still need to see in Young Sheldon season 7

With Young Sheldon season 7 being the last, we’re going to see the story start to wrap up. But that also means the farewell season is going to be a special one. And I think one of the best ways to close it out is to bring on a few more people we need to hear from in a voice cameo before the show comes to an end. That would be Johnny Galecki as Leonard and Kaley Cuoco as Penny this time, And a fun bonus would be getting  Kunal Nayyar as Raj and Melissa Rauch as Bernadette as well. Click here for our full explanation as to why we want to see these voice cameos in Young Sheldon season 7!

Young Sheldon season 7 premieres Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.