Young Sheldon's best idea for a cameo is impossible, unfortunately, thanks to The Big Bang Theory. Over the course of its five-year run on CBS, the prequel spinoff has seen its fair share of special cameos, including Bob Newhart as Professor Proton and Jason Alexander as Gene Lundy. With Young Sheldon confirmed for two more seasons, the show has enough time to bring in more notable guests, but it won't be able to feature what would surely be the best of them all.
Throughout 12 seasons on the air, even to its series finale, The Big Bang Theory featured countless cameos — from real scientists like Stephen Hawking and astronauts like Mike Massimino to prolific actors such as William Shatner, James Earl Jones, and Adam West. Each one of them had great moments on the nerd-centric sitcom as they encountered the Pasadena gang separately. Given this, there's an expectation that Young Sheldon will follow suit in this regard, especially now that it's established itself as TV’s number one comedy. As more and more people, including notable personalities, watch the CBS prequel spinoff, it would be easier to convince them to appear on the show.
That should be the case with Mark Hamill, who confirmed he watches Young Sheldon. The Star Wars icon used social media to praise the Big Bang Theory prequel and its ensemble cast. Considering Sheldon's penchant for anything geek, the actor behind Luke Skywalker would have been the perfect guest star for Young Sheldon. He could be de-aged using the same technology that Lucasfilm employed to feature a young Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, The Mandalorian, and The Book of Boba Fett. That way, Hamill would be at the right age with regard to when Young Sheldon is currently set, which is in the early 1990s. Unfortunately, this cannot be done because of Hamill's notable The Big Bang Theory cameo where he officiated the Meemaw-less wedding of Sheldon and Amy. It was Howard's surprise gift for his long-time friend as it was made clear that it was the first time Sheldon ever saw Hamill in person.
Young Sheldon Doesn’t Need Cameos Anyway
The good thing is Young Sheldon doesn't need cameos to thrive. The Big Bang Theory made a big deal out of each of its guest stars; most of those episodes revolved around their cameos' involvement. That made sense since the nerd-centric show was set in Los Angeles where many notable personalities reside, so bumping into them was fairly easy. The guest stars helped better understand the characters of The Big Bang Theory, particularly the male members of the Pasadena gang, who were typically star-struck with their celebrity encounters. Meanwhile, unlike The Big Bang Theory, Young Sheldon is an ensemble family comedy. Despite having Sheldon as a titular character, it's more interested in tackling all of the Coopers' day-to-day lives. That leaves very little or no space to regularly feature guest stars. Granted that Young Sheldon has had several cameos, but they don't tend to be as important to the narrative as the ones on The Big Bang Theory.
Still, Young Sheldon featuring cameos moving forward would be a welcome development. If CBS can find a way to incorporate Mark Hamill in the spinoff prequel sitcom without breaking continuity, that would be great. However, don't expect his or anyone else's future guest appearance to be as impactful as seeing Stephen Hawking, Stan Lee, or Steve Wozniak on The Big Bang Theory. That's because Young Sheldon's cameos would be more for fun instead of necessity.
Young Sheldon season 6 premieres Thursday, September 29, on CBS.