Young Sheldon’s Annie Potts Had One Request for Meemaw That She Wouldn’t Give Up
Meemaw would not be the same without this key element.
Although some of Meemaw’s appearances on The Big Bang Theory were rocky, to say the least, the character quickly became a fan favorite and one of the show’s mainstays. No doubt a lot of thought was put into her character in a prequel, Young Sheldon, to not only repeat the success but to improve upon it.
Fortunately for viewers, the casting of Annie Potts was the decision that took Meemaw to a whole new level as a character and made her even more fun to watch.
As the actress later revealed in an interview with Variety, she was tasked with the most important job of all: to build such an on-screen relationship with Iain Armitage’s Sheldon Cooper that no one would ever question why she was the favorite member of his family. To say that Potts succeeded would be an understatement.
Though most of the character’s guidelines were already set by both The Big Bang Theory lore and Chuck Lorre’s additional instructions, the actress still had some say in the details that weren’t predetermined. Meemaw’s appearance, for once, was an area that she was able to make completely her own:
“I said, ‘Oh, I would like to play her with gray hair,’ and they said. ‘What actor wants their hair gray!?’ They wanted me to have the same hair color as my on-screen daughter, but I thought she was so different from the daughter, I wanted something a little different,” the actress admitted.
Fortunately, there were no creative differences between the actress and the show’s creators. If anything, according to Annie Potts herself, she felt extremely comfortable taking on the role and simply took inspiration from women with the same background as Meemaw. In her own words, getting into character was “putting on her bedroom slippers and going to work”.
And that ease certainly translated to the screen.
If you don’t want to miss Young Sheldon’s return to CBS, keep an eye out for all the important news and behind-the-scenes updates. As of now, production is on pause due to the ongoing WGA and SAG AFTRA strikes.
