Missy's Absence From TBBT Was a Blessing in Disguise for This Young Sheldon Star
Young Sheldon's Raegan Revord feels thankful that adult Missy wasn't a returning character in The Big Bang Theory.
Raegan Revord has become a true star of Young Sheldon and garnered a significant fanbase for her portrayal of Sheldon's twin sister, Melissa Cooper aka Missy.
While Missy is one of the fan-favorite characters of The Big Bang Theory prequel, an adult version of Sheldon's sister played by Courtney Henggeler appeared only twice in the parent show.
Her first appearance made Leonard, Howard, and Raj fight over her attention in the Season 1 episode titled The Pork Chop Indeterminacy. Henggeler returned to the role again 10 years later, in Season 11 when the Cooper family attended Sheldon and Amy's wedding.
Her second cameo happened the same year as Young Sheldon was released, so there was not a lot to build the character of Missy on. And Raegan Revord thinks it is a good thing. The 14-year-old actress revealed to Popternative that Missy's absence in The Big Bang Theory allowed her to create the character from scratch.
"I watched clips of older Missy to kind of see how she was, [but I] was also able to add my own take on the character," the Young Sheldon star shared.
This kind of creative freedom can be a blessing, especially if an actor plays in a prequel that already made it known where a character is heading. For example, many Young Sheldon fans are heartbroken over the inevitable fate of Sheldon's father George Cooper Sr. which was described in The Big Bang Theory.
While Young Sheldon is a family sitcom featuring all the Cooper family members and their relationships, The Big Bang Theory is about Sheldon's friends and their life in Pasadena. So his family members' appearances served more as a way to understand Sheldon better than to introduce fully-developed characters. Besides, the creators didn't know that the character of Sheldon's polar opposite twin sister would be so well-received by the audience.
Raegan Revord might consider herself lucky for being given creative freedom with her character, but The Big Bang Theory could actually benefit from Missy as a returning character. Young Sheldon showed that the relationship between the twins could be one of the most hilarious aspects of any show. Besides, Missy could serve as a perfect friend to Penny and shake up the Pasadena gang dynamic.