Chuck Lorre Weighs In on the End of Young Sheldon and Bob Hearts Abishola — Which Decision ‘Was Not My Call’?

‘Young Sheldon’ Ending With Season 7 | Finale Airing May 2024Scroll back up to restore default view.
Ryan Schwartz
December 1, 2023·2 min read

Sitcom titan Chuck Lorre is opening up about the decision to bring his two remaining CBS comedies — Young Sheldon and Bob Hearts Abishola — to a close in 2024.

During an appearance on The Hollywood Reporter’s TV’s Top 5 podcast, Lorre first reflects on the “natural lifespan” of the Big Bang Theory prequel, which is ending after Season 7 (which will consist of just 14 episodes).

“The story of this extraordinary prodigy in a small town outside of Houston, in a family where he is very much a fish out of water — that story we’ve kind of told, and the remainder of his path leading up to The Big Bang Theory happens at CalTech, in California,” Lorre explains. “Seven years… seems like the natural lifespan of [Young Sheldon], and that was a feeling that was shared between myself and both [series co-creator/executive producer] Steve Molaro and [fellow EP] Steve Holland, who have been instrumental in keeping this thing as extraordinary as it has been.”

Lorre seems less at peace with CBS’ choice to end Bob Hearts Abishola after Season 5.

“I think there are so many more stories to tell,” he says. “The initial motivation for that [show] was a romance wrapped around a story of immigrants who make America great — that extraordinary, courageous effort that is made by millions of people every year who find their way in this country. I don’t necessarily feel like we were done, but that was not my call.”

Acknowledging the news that 11 out of 13 series regulars were bumped to recurring for the final 13 episodes, Lorre explains, “There were fiscal restraints imposed on the show. In order to continue making the show, the cost of making it had to be reined in, and that was the only way to do that.