5 Beloved Sitcoms Like The Big Bang Theory That Launched Multiple Spin-Offs
When "The Big Bang Theory" made its debut in 2007, no one dreamed it would run for 12 seasons, score 10 Emmy Awards and spawn a popular prequel-style spin-off. At Comic-Con San Diego in 2008, series co-creator Chuck Lorre even admitted the original concept for the show was less than stellar. "We did the 'Big Bang' pilot about two and a half years ago, and it sucked," he said, as reported by CBR. "But there were two remarkable things that worked perfectly, and that was Johnny [Galecki] and Jim [Parsons]. We rewrote the thing entirely, and then we were blessed with Kaley [Cuoco] and Simon [Helberg] and Kunal [Nayyar]."
Producers were blessed a second time with the "Young Sheldon" spin-off. The series stars Iain Armitage as a child version of Parsons' BBT character Sheldon Cooper. In 2022, Variety reported that "Young Sheldon" was the most-watched broadcast television comedy of the season. Given the success of both "The Big Bang Theory" and "Young Sheldon," it's no surprise that in 2019, Lorre told The Hollywood Reporter that he had thought about spin-off ideas for other "BBT" characters.
Five years later, with "Young Sheldon" ending a seven-season run, a new series focusing on "Young Sheldon" characters Georgie and Mandy (played by Montana Jordan and Emily Osment) is in the works for CBS, per Variety. If the deal comes to fruition, it will put "The Big Bang Theory" on a prestigious — and rather short — list of beloved TV sitcoms that have spun off into at least three connected shows.
Happy Days paved the way for 6 spin-off shows
In 1972, the "Love American Style" episode "Love and the Happy Days" served as the pilot for what would become one of the biggest sitcoms of the 1970s: "Happy Days." The 1950s-set sitcom starred Ron Howard and Henry Winkler, but its long run served as a birthplace for a list of new shows for ABC, including "Laverne & Shirley," "Mork & Mindy," and "Joanie Loves Chachi."
In a 1989 essay for People, showrunner Garry Marshall admitted it was a no-brainer to give guest star Robin Williams his own show after he guest starred as a Martian named Mork on "Happy Days." "At the end of the episode, 300 people in the audience stood up and applauded, which is not usually done. It didn't take a genius to know he could do his own show, and we made one for him, 'Mork & Mindy,'" Marshall wrote. When Marshall called in a favor to his sister, Penny, for a last-minute guest role on "Happy Days," she brought along her comedy writing partner Cindy Williams. "What was lucky for me was the script for the episode came in late, and I called them at the last minute to do me a favor, play these characters, Laverne and Shirley," he shared. "They came in and they made magic."
By the late 1970s, showrunners may have jumped the shark with the short-lived "Happy Days" spin-offs, "Blansky's Beauties" and "Out of the Blue." This is in addition to the time-traveling Saturday morning cartoon, "The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang."
All in the Family left behind an extended family tree
"All in the Family" was one of the most controversial sitcoms of the 1970s, but it was popular enough to run nine seasons and spawn a slew of spin-offs. In 2016, show creator Norman Lear revealed that it was Archie Bunker himself, actor Carrol O'Connor, who pushed for a spin-off. The spin-off "Archie Bunker's Place" is set in a Queens bar — and Lear was not happy. "The only one who didn't [want to stop] was Carroll, and he was the most difficult," Lear said, per The Hollywood Reporter. "He went on to do 'Archie Bunker's Place' — I didn't want that to happen, and I prevented it from happening for some months. My partners and the network, of course, wanted it." "Archie Bunker's Place" ultimately aired from 1979 to 1983.
Several other spin-offs came from characters tied to the Bunkers. Neighbors George and Louise moved on up with their own spin-off, "The Jeffersons." Edith Bunker's cousin, Maude Findlay (Bea Arthur), also got her own show, making headlines for an abortion-themed episode in 1972 ahead of the Roe v. Wade decision. Maude's housekeeper, Florida, also got her own CBS sitcom, "Good Times," which aired for six seasons and made a dy-no-mite pop culture icon out of Jimmie Walker.
In 1982, Bunker's daughter Gloria (Sally Struthers) also headlined a self-titled spin-off that shows her as a single mom after separating from her husband, Mike Stivic (Rob Reiner). The series didn't last long, but an even shorter-lived offspring from the AITF franchise came with "704 Hauser." Lear's spin-off about a Black family who buys Archie Bunker's old house only lasted for five episodes in 1994.
The Brady Bunch machine rolled for decades
If it seems like "The Brady Bunch" has been on TV forever, it's because it kind of has. The ABC family comedy made its debut in 1969, and while it only aired for five seasons, it has run in an endless loop in syndication for more than 50 years. The series has also produced a bunch of offshoot shows.
A Saturday morning cartoon, "The Brady Kids," premiered in 1972, when Bradymania was at its height. In an interview with the Archive of American Television, show creator Sherwood Schwartz said Filmation approached him with the idea to immortalize the Bradys as kiddie cartoon characters. He agreed, with the stipulation that the storylines be "imaginative," a condition he felt wasn't met.
Fantasy TV moguls Sid and Marty Krofft later brainstormed "The Brady Bunch Hour," a one-season wonder that aired in 1976. The ABC variety show featured the Bradys singing, dancing, and hanging with celebrity guests such as Donny and Marie Osmond, and Milton Berle. Five years later, a TV reunion special, "The Brady Girls Get Married," segued the spin-off "The Brady Brides," which followed Marcia and Jan Brady's new lives as wives as they lived together with their polar opposite husbands.
In 1990, a CBS drama series featured the adult Brady Bunch dealing with serious topics, such as alcoholism. Joining the family was original MTV VJ Martha Quinn as Bobby Brady's wife, Tracy. Quinn told The Television Academy," It's pretty amazing, honestly, that I was both on MTV and am a member of the Brady family." Ultimately, viewers didn't dig the more serious tone, and "The Bradys" was canceled after six episodes.
Mary Richards' friends (and her boss) got their own shows
In the 1970s, Mary Tyler Moore's CBS sitcom focused on her character Mary Richards' life as a single working woman in Minneapolis. By the time the Emmy-winning sitcom ended with a group hug, the show had aired for seven seasons. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" also spawned multiple spin-offs. First up was her neighbor, Rhoda (Valerie Harper). The spin-off "Rhoda" aired for five seasons and featured the lead's wedding to Joe Gerard (David Groh).
During an interview with Archive of American Television, Harper said of her character, "We'd seen her for four and a half years single and she wanted to get married and they wanted to write a modern marriage." However, Harper said TV wasn't ready for a modern marriage back then. "Rhoda" caused an even bigger firestorm when she separated from Joe in Season 3 and ultimately divorced him. Although "Rhoda" was a top 10 show early on, ratings declined amid the split storyline. The show was canceled before all of Season 5 even aired.
In 1975, "MTM" landlady Phyllis Lindstrom starred in "Phyllis," a two-season spin-off set in San Francisco after the death of her husband, Lars. And Mary's newsroom boss, Lou Grant, starred in a self-titled hour-long dramatic spin-off from 1977 to 1982. Series star Edward Asner told The Hollywood Reporter he missed the laughs of a live audience. "The effect of the laugh at the right moment was enormously restorative and energizing," he said. "You don't have that with an hour show, you just don't. There's nothing more fun than hearing rip-roaring laughter from an audience."
Cheers toasted to several spin-offs
In the 1980s, "Cheers," a sitcom set at a Boston bar, ran for a whopping 11 seasons on NBC and featured an eclectic cast of barflies. It's no wonder, then, that it was excellent turf for spin-off material.
"Cheers" waitress Carla Tortelli's (Rhea Pearlman) ex-husband, Nick (Dan Hedaya), and his new wife, Loretta (Jean Kasem), were the focus of a spin-off titled "The Tortellis." But "Cheers" fans didn't toast the new series and the show only lasted 13 episodes. Much more successful is the "Frasier" spin-off. Featuring pompous psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer), the series not only aired for 11 seasons on NBC but reemerged for a 2023 reboot.
Another show that's considered part of the "Cheers" universe is "Wings." The airport-themed comedy featured multiple "Cheers" crossovers during its run from 1990 to 1997. As for what might have been, "Cheers" co-creator James Burrows once told The Hollywood Reporter there were discussions about a spin-off featuring barstool besties Norm (George Wendt) and Cliff (John Ratzenberger), but he didn't want to do it.