Since it’s premiere in 2007, The Big Bang Theory has become one of the most popular TV shows on the air. Filmed in front of a live audience, the show has the feel of an old-fashioned television comedy while introducing modern characters and relatable storylines that nerds (and popular kids everywhere) have grown attached to.

When it was announced that the 12th season would be the last, fans were upset but took comfort in knowing that they would at least get one final season to say goodbye to their favorite characters. When exactly in May will the show end?

How does the cast feel about the show ending?

Obviously, when an actor plays one character and works with the same group of people for a 12-year timeframe, attachments form. The cast of The Big Bang Theory is no exception, and have been open about how much they will miss the show, and their castmates. Kaley Cuoco, who plays Penny Hofstadter, opened up in a recent interview to state that filming the final season’s episodes have been very tough. She admits that the whole experience of filming the show has been special and that it is heartbreaking to know that their time together will soon come to an end.

‘The Big Bang Theory’ will end May 16, 2019

Fans, too, have only a short time left to enjoy new episodes of The Big Bang Theory. The 12th season began airing in late 2018, with current episodes airing on CBS. The very last episode is set to air May 16, 2019, and it’s surely going to be a huge moment for both the cast and the fans who have grown up with the show. Showrunners might have something special planned for that last episode, although nothing has yet been announced. Being on the air for 12 years is a huge accomplishment for any TV series, and especially for that series to remain as consistently popular as The Big Bang Theory. 

Fortunately, reruns will likely air for years and years with no end in sight. Diehard fans can also enjoy the popular spinoff show Young Sheldon, which began in 2017 and focuses on the childhood years of boy genius Sheldon Cooper. 

What is the show about?

The Big Bang Theory began by focusing on a core group of characters – mainly Sheldon Cooper, played by Jim Parsons, a socially awkward genius who lives by a very strict set of guidelines regarding his personal and professional life, and Leonard Hofstadter, played by former child actor Johnny Galecki, Sheldon Cooper’s roommate and an experimental physicist at the same university that Cooper works. 

Penny, an attractive blonde girl, moves across the hall from the two and kickstarts a chain of events that would see character relationships evolve and grow over the next twelve years. Other central characters in the show include Howard Wolowitz, an aerospace engineer and one of Cooper and Hofstadter’s best friends, and Rajesh Koothrappali, a particle astrophysicist who has a crippling inability to talk to women. Amy Farrah Fowler, played by Mayim Bialik, was introduced in the third season and eventually became Sheldon Cooper’s love interest. Their relationship has become one of the most popular storylines on the show.

While comedy forms the basis of the show’s theme, many dramatic storylines are introduced where the characters have to deal with very real problems, including the death of Howard Wolowitz’s mother, and the eventual marriage of Penny and Leonard Hofstadter. Fans love the show because it is one of the very few TV shows in syndication that has allowed characters to evolve and change over the years, while still retaining the qualities that made them so loveable in the first place.