Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons turned down $50m for two more seasons

This week it was announced that The Big Bang Theory will finish next year, according to a statement from the sitcom's creators Warner Bros. TV and CBS.

However, now reports are emerging that the decision to end the juggernaut comedy was prompted by Jim Parsons, who earns a whopping near-$1 million per episode as theoretical physicist Sheldon Cooper. 

Parsons, who has won four Emmy awards, a Golden Globe and a voice role in spin-off show Young Sheldon, has reportedly tired of his record-breaking salary and decided to walk away from The Big Bang Theory after 12 series – and has ended the show in the process.

Entertainment Weekly first broke the news, reporting that: "Parsons was ready to say goodbye to the ensemble sitcom that made him a household name. Since there is no show without Dr. Sheldon Cooper, next spring’s 12th season finale of The Big Bang Theory will mark the end of the longest-running multi-camera series in TV history."

There was some speculation that the show's ending came after Warner Bros TV and CBS failed to negotiating with Cooper and his co-stars Kaley Cuoco, and Johnny Galecki over the $50 million a-piece it would cost the producers to keep them for two more series.

Either way, the final series of The Big Band Theory will begin in the US on Monday, September 24 and is expected to finish next May.