Performers of the Week: The Cast of Young Sheldon
THE PERFORMERS | Iain Armitage, Zoe Perry, Lance Barber, Annie Potts, Montana Jordan, Emily Osment and Raegan Revord
THE SHOW | Young Sheldon
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THE EPISODES | “Funeral“/”Memoir” (May 16, 2024)
THE PERFORMANCES | A Cooper family tragedy brought out the very best in the CBS sitcom’s ensemble, affording each series regular a chance to shine in Thursday’s heart-wrenching series finale.
Let’s start with “mighty little man” Iain Armitage, who was just 8 years old when he was first cast as pint-sized Sheldon. Over the next seven seasons, we watched as he began to master all of his predecessor’s mannerisms. By the time he stepped up to deliver Sheldon’s phantasmic eulogy to George Sr., his transformation was complete. The cadence of his speech, down to the pauses between each sentence, and the way he blinked to accentuate his brainy alter-ego’s discomfort expressing genuine emotion, was all trademark Sheldon, harkening back to Jim Parsons’ delivery of Dr. Cooper’s Nobel Prize acceptance speech.
Armitage’s TV siblings also pulled their weight. When Young Sheldon first premiered, 9-year-old Raegan Revord stood out for her pristine comedic timing; you could always count on her to elevate an otherwise mundane family dinner with one of Missy’s razor-sharp retorts. But as she got older, Revord showed that she could deliver when handed heavier material — such was the case when Missy tearfully apologized to George Sr. after a near-death experience in the Season 6 finale. She was even better here as Sheldon’s twin sister reminisced about a daddy-daughter date to Red Lobster, and she reduced us to tears with just four words: “Thank you for that.”
Meanwhile, if there was ever any doubt that Montana Jordan has blossomed into a capable leading man worthy of his own spinoff, look no further than his vulnerable and understated performance as Georgie stood at his old man’s casket and told him that he needn’t worry about the family he left behind. (Conversely, Jordan’s TV spouse Emily Osment, already a seasoned sitcom pro, brought some much needed levity in Part 2 when Mandy found herself stuck in an apology loop.)
It’s worth noting that Armitage, Revord and Jordan learned from three of the best, and it’s about time they got their due. Lance Barber received a splendid final showcase in Part 1, as Sheldon worked through all the different ways that he could have said goodbye to his father; as George, Barber imbued each set of last words with equal parts sincerity and gravitas. Annie Potts, typically a firecracker, excelled in quieter moments — like when Meemaw pleaded with Sheldon and Missy to get baptized for the sake of her grieving daughter. And that brings us to the best performance of all…
Zoe Perry, who has arguably had the toughest role of all these past seven seasons — not only coming up against comparisons to Laurie Metcalf’s portrayal on The Big Bang Theory, but against an audience frequently repelled by her character’s righteous indignation — gave a performance as good as any we’ve seen from her mother as Mary broke down midway through her eulogy and revealed how mad she was at God, at her late husband, and at herself for not trying harder in her marriage while George was still alive.
Scroll down to see who scored Honorable Mention shout-outs this week…
HONORABLE MENTION: Jean Smart
In Hacks‘ fifth episode, Jean Smart gave us something entirely different: vulnerability. After Deborah and Ava got lost in the woods without a phone, the actress gave us a heartbreaking tour through her character’s deepest insecurities. When Ava offered to leave her injured boss behind to fetch help, Smart’s face grew with worry as she uttered meekly, “Don’t leave me.” It was a subtle moment, but she filled it to the brim with emotion. Later, Deborah confessed her fears of aging and not accomplishing everything she wanted to. Smart delivered the monologue with so much heart and sadness, cracking Deb wide open to reveal anxieties she typically works overtime to conceal. The veteran actress wows us each and every week, yet still painted Deborah in a new light, forcing us to feel for a woman who’s usually comically abrasive. Guess there is a soft chewy center hidden inside that tough exterior after all. — Nick Caruso
HONORABLE MENTION: Nicholas Galitzine
Over the course of Starz’s Mary & George, we watched Nicholas Galitzine‘s titular character grow from a na?ve boy to a cocky young man hungry for power. In this week’s finale, we saw just how far George was willing to go in that quest, and the results were shocking and brutal, but triumphant for Galitzine, who portrayed George’s rise (and eventual downfall) with impressive self-assuredness. In one episode, the actor showed it all: He was confident and commanding when telling off his enemies and rallying Parliament; manically distraught when George started to lose King James’ affection; horrified and conflicted as he suffocated his lover; and finally, misguidedly arrogant and cocksure in the minutes before his murder. Given the complex qualities Galitzine brought to the role, we were cursing George’s untimely demise, but alas, such is real-life history. —Vlada Gelman
HONORABLE MENTION: Ana Gasteyer
Ana Gasteyer brought the party (and the booze!) to Loot’s eighth episode, starring as Grace, a billionaire flying off the rails after her untimely divorce. The former SNL cast member let all of her energy loose as her character chugged champagne and cough syrup while popping all sorts of pills in her quest to turn over a new leaf. We got totally caught up in the actress’ joy and manic party vibes as Grace dished out drugs and cash to her guests and cut up expensive baseball cards just to spite her ex. And the funny just kept coming. After Grace, uhh, “freshened up” (read: cocaine), Gasteyer delightfully bounced around the frame, cracking jokes about eating penguins and destroying Teslas in Iceland. Not only was it great to see her and Maya Rudolph reunited, but all of the fun Gasteyer had in the process just leaped off the screen. — N.C.
Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in the comments!
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