Young Sheldon's ending remains uncertain as CBS has yet to decide its future beyond season 7. The Big Bang Theory spin-off has gradually established its own identity separate from its parent series. Instead of a straight-up sitcom, Young Sheldon diversified its storytelling and made it more like a family comedy/drama, which expanded its appeal. While it remains very popular, the show may be approaching its final stretch, although nothing is set in stone.
Similar to the majority of all scripted series, Young Sheldon has been indefinitely delayed due to the historic dual strikes of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA. Now that the industry-wide issue is resolved, networks are working double time to save the remainder of the fall 2023-2024 season. However, it is particularly tricky for Young Sheldon after executive producer Steve Holland suggested earlier this year that season 7 may be The Big Bang Theory spin-off's last. Several months later, however, Deadline claims that CBS has yet to decide on the matter. Read the related excerpt from the report below:
As for Young Sheldon, The Big Bang Theory prequel's upcoming seventh season is the last in a three-year pickup the comedy received in 2021. There has been speculation that the show's story could come to a natural end with Season 7 but no decision has been made on this being Young Sheldon's final chapter, sources said.
Ending Young Sheldon is far more complicated compared to pulling the plug on other shows. The Big Bang Theory prequel has become so popular that it is now TV's number 1 comedy, with season 6 posting show-high ratings. This indicates that either the series is currently at its peak or it could be more popular moving forward. Given this, CBS is understandably hesitant to end it. In fact, they are motivated to keep it on the air for as long as possible. Meanwhile, the whole cast has been nothing but committed to continuously appearing in the project.
The issue lies with its story, however. As a prequel, Young Sheldon has a pre-determined death, which is mandated by the established The Big Bang Theory canon. Granted that the spin-off doesn't always honor continuity, altering Sheldon's timeline is too big of a change to his history. Per the nerd-centric sitcom, he ends college at 14 and subsequently starts his post-graduate studies at Caltech. This means that when he comes back from his study abroad grant in Germany as seen in the Young Sheldon season 6 finale, he only has a year left at East Texas Tech before moving to Pasadena.
Making things further complex is the fact that Young Sheldon season 7 is supposedly only getting 15 episodes compared to the series' typical 22. The significant decrease in output is a result of the show being delayed, and it couldn't be prevented given what the industry recently went through. However, it will be very difficult to deliver a satisfying finale with a shortened run. At this point, it's arguably best for CBS to just renew Young Sheldon for season 8.
