The Roseanne Character You Likely Forgot Young Sheldon's Zoe Perry Played
As hard as it might be to believe, "Young Sheldon" is soon to air its 5th season finale. And as of this writing, there doesn't appear to be an end date for the hit "The Big Bang Theory" spin-off series anywhere in sight. Given its status in the small-screen landscape, "Young Sheldon" may well end up running as long as its iconic predecessor. Even if it doesn't, the series has proven beyond a doubt that TV lovers simply cannot get enough of Sheldon Cooper whether he's a socially awkward Nobel prize-winning genius (Jim Parsons), or a socially challenged child prodigy coming of age as the smartest person in any room (Iain Armitage).
Fans can't seem to get enough of Sheldon's mom Mary Cooper either. The character became a clear fan favorite with Laurie Metcalf playing the woman who raised the boy genius on "The Big Bang Theory," and has only grown in stature since Zoe Perry took over the role on "Young Sheldon." Metcalf, of course, rose to prominence portraying Jackie Harris on "Roseanne." What you may not realize is that Perry actually earned her first acting credit on the hit ABC sitcom as well. Here's who the "Young Sheldon" star played on "Roseanne."
Young Sheldon is not the first time Zoe Perry has played a younger version of her famous mom
On the list of things you may or may not know about Zoe Perry, the fact that the "Young Sheldon" star is the real-life daughter of Laurie Metcalf is likely high up there. But Perry is, in fact, the eldest child of Metcalf and fellow actor Jeff Perry. While Zoe has never shared screen time with her famous mother, she's already had a better than solid run portraying a younger version of Metcalf's "The Big Bang Theory" character.
"Young Sheldon" is not, however, the first time Zoe Perry has played a younger version of her mother's character on television. As you might've guessed by now, Perry did indeed portray a young version of Jackie Harris on "Roseanne" during the series' original run on ABC.
Perry actually appeared as Young Jackie in two separate episodes of "Roseanne." The first came in the Season 5 Halloween episode which found Roseanne (Roseanne Barr) being visited by the ghost of Halloween past and re-living a moment between her teenage self (Sara Rue) and Jackie (Perry). Perry's second "Roseanne" appearance came in a Season 7 two-parter titled "All About Rosey," and partly focused on teen Jackie and her big sis visiting a wise old psychic (Isabel Sanford). And if you've seen Zoe Perry at work in either "Roseanne" episode, or on "Young Sheldon," you know there's not an actor alive better suited to play a younger version of any of her mom's characters.