Does George Cooper die in ‘Young Sheldon’?

We’re about a week away from bidding a final farewell to a young(er) Sheldon and his entire family forever. As much as we all knew this inevitable day would come, it almost goes unsaid that we wish we could extend the comfort Young Sheldon provides for a few more years.

With a heavy heart and even puffier eyelids, we must accept that the penultimate episode aired yesterday, May 9, leaving fans utterly flabbergasted by the rollercoaster of events — which, coincidentally, were both entirely unsurprising and gut-wrenching at the same time. Part of the reason lies in the fact that the show is nearing its conclusion; the other part is truly the immense absence of plot armor that we were hoping George Cooper would have.

How does George die in Young Sheldon?

George Cooper does indeed die of a heart attack on Young Sheldon — specifically in season 7, episode 12. Though it happens off-screen, we learn that the patriarch of the Cooper family passed away when Mary opens the door to the visibly upset Tom and Wayne, who relay the news that George had suffered a heart attack while at work. Mary, Missy, Sheldon, and Meemaw then discover that their father, husband, and son-in-law had passed away.

Almost immediately, Mary, Missy, and Meemaw burst into tears, taking us along on this emotional journey with them, but Sheldon sits down stone-faced, as expected. This moment wasn’t so shocking to fans of The Big Bang Theory, though. In the original series, Sheldon had already shared that his father had passed away from a heart attack when he was 14 years old. Unfortunately, the Cooper family could not have known that this would happen in advance.

While many fans expected the series to either end or even skip over George’s passing, it was an inevitable moment for the show. This will undoubtedly propel Sheldon’s own growth as an adult, as he is forced to step up to help his family. Mary is also forced to become the matriarch of the Coopers, without the strength and support of her husband of 20 years.

This death is particularly devastating when you consider that George was just days away from selling their house and moving to Houston to pursue his dream of coaching football at Rice University. He would have relocated their family for a brighter and better future, but sadly, he never got the chance to achieve it — although we know Sheldon will be successful, regardless.

The season finale of Young Sheldon will be comprised of two episodes, which will air on May 16 on CBS.