Warning! Spoilers ahead for Young Sheldon season 5.
George (Lance Barber) and Brenda's (Melissa Peterman) budding affair might include a plot twist, as recently hinted by Young Sheldon. News of the Cooper patriarch's infidelity was first revealed on The Big Bang Theory. Sheldon (Jim Parsons) told Penny (Kaley Cuoco) that he caught his dad having sexual relations with another woman when he was 13 years old. When Young Sheldon was greenlit, there were quickly expectations that it would fully tackle the narrative, but that hasn't been as easy as it sounded.
This cheating scandal has been one of the trickiest plotlines for Young Sheldon to tackle. For starters, The Big Bang Theory spin-off presents a significantly different version of the character. Instead of the no-good dad that The Big Bang Theory's Sheldon described in the nerd-centric sitcom, the prequel features a flawed but responsible father. But, unless CBS is willing to explicitly contradict what was established in The Big Bang Theory, George's infidelity narrative needs to happen. For what it's worth, it appears as if the family dramedy is already actively setting it up given George's borderline inappropriate relationship with Brenda.
The start of Young Sheldon season 5 heavily focused on developing George and Brenda's growing attraction to each other following their flirtatious night together in the season 4 finale. But the narrative has been sidelined for a while to focus on other members of the Cooper family. That's until Brenda's re-emergence in the Young Sheldon episode "A God-Fearin' Baptist and a Hot Trophy Husband." In it, Sheldon (Iain Armitage) and Missy (Raegan Revord) are sent to the Sparks' house as their parents and Meemaw (Annie Potts) deal with Georgie's (Montana Jordan) situation. As the twins try to decipher what's really going on with their family, they comb through different scenarios including George potentially dying and the couple possibly getting a divorce. In both instances, Brenda shoots them down — as if she's been in constant contact with George. Assuming that this is the case, then it means that despite Young Sheldon not actively tackling their relationship, their affair may have already been going on for a while now. At the very least, they could have been meeting each other secretly.
With Young Sheldon season 5 winding down, co-creator Steven Molaro previously confirmed that George's infidelity storyline will be revisited towards the end of the year. Unless he starts seeing someone new, the show's best bet to organically progress this narrative is to reunite George and Brenda in Young Sheldon. Even if the pair hasn't become romantic and just simply continued to hang out as friends, it's possible that George's growing rift with Mary finally pushes him to act on his attraction to Brenda. As seen in Young Sheldon season 5, episode 19, especially since Georgie's situation is bringing back a lot of memories for the couple, while Mary doesn't seem to harbor any regrets about tying the knot after she got pregnant with their firstborn, her husband clearly has a different opinion on the matter. The Big Bang Theory spin-off is hinting that after almost two decades of being together, George has been pondering on what his life could've been if he didn't marry Mary.
The Young Sheldon season 5 finale will only make things worse for George as the official brief suggests that he will finally be fired at Medford High School. The Cooper patriarch is already going through a lot, adding financial stress to that could lead to him fully spiraling. The Big Bang Theory spin-off can then use that to finally tackle his inevitable cheating plotline.
Young Sheldon season 5 airs Thursdays on CBS.