Iain Armitage | Biography
Starring the buzziest sitcom of the year 2017, 'The Big Bang Theory' spinoff 'Young Sheldon,' Armitage plays the kid version of Jim Parsons's sarcastic but socially awkward titular character, Sheldon Cooper—a genius theoretical physicist possessing an IQ of 187 and highly narcissistic traits — of 'Big Bang Theory.'The show follows Sheldon as he grows up in East Texas with his family and attends high school in 1989.
American child actor Iain Armitage is best known for his portrayal of Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory’s spinoff, Young Sheldon.
Who is Iain Armitage?
Iain Armitage is a theater critic and a child actor. At the age of 3, his mom recorded a video in which he thanked the American musical Hairspray’s cast, and uploaded it on her social media. She also created his YouTube channel to upload his videos.
After the video garnered attention, he started appearing in more “thank you” videos before making a real review of the play Waiting for Gadot in 2014.
In the 2016 ‘Tony Awards,’ Armitage covered the red carpet and interviewed mega-celebrities. At the end of the ceremony, he was referenced in the opening number of the show.
In addition to his passion for performing, Armitage has appeared on both big and small screens.
In 2017, he appeared on the bigger screen with Hollywood’s popular names such as Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, and Reese Witherspoon in the HBO limited series Big Little Lies. He portrayed one of the main characters, Ziggy Champion, in the American drama. The same year he acted in the film The Glass Castle and the Netflix feature Our Soul at Night.
The year would also be the time when he gained popularity both nationally and internationally since he had started acting. The credit to the newfound reputation went to his performance as Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory’s Prequel, Young Sheldon.
In 2020, he lent his voice to play Shaggy Rogers’s character in the 2020’s mystery-comedy movie, Scoob!
The following year, Armitage was nominated in the category ‘Favourite Male TV Star; for his portrayal of Young Sheldon in ‘Kid’s Choice Award.’
How Old is Iain Armitage?
Iain Armitage was born in Georgia, USA, on 15 July 2008, to Euan Morton and Lee Armitage. He is 13 years old as of 2021.
His father, Euan, is a Scottish actor-singer recognized for his role as Boy George in the stage musical, Taboo, and King George, in another musical, Hamilton. His mother, Lee, is a theatre producer, and his grandfather; Richard Armitage was the Deputy Secretary of State under President George W. Bush between March 2001 and February 2005, and he was personally involved in the Valerie Plame affair controversy.
Since both of his parents had respective acting backgrounds, they named their child after English actor Sir Ian McKellen.
Theater Critic
The child prodigy made a name for himself because of his theatrical reviews on his YouTube Channel. In 2011, he got the chance to watch the American musical Hairspray played at the Signature Theatre.
Since his babysitter was in the show, and the theatre was close to his house, he often visited the place. The musical was complex for a child to understand; however, Armitage admired the song and the dance.
Later, he made an appreciation video to thank the cast for their performance. His mother uploaded the video in 2014, and Armitage came into the limelight. Eventually, he did his first real review by reviewing the play Waiting for Godot on March 14, 2014.
After reviewing the play, he would review plays such as Beached, Gypsy, Hedwig, and The Angry Inch, Oklahoma, Whats the constitution mean to me, Mrs. Meryl, Beetlejuice, Be More Chill, Ms. Shailene, To kill a Mockingbird, and many more.
His reviews would get immense recognition because of his attention to detail, language acquisition, and focus on the developmental processes.
Acting Career
Abrams Artists Agency’s agent Jamie Pillet first recognized Armitage from a video of his that his mother uploaded on her Facebook feed. The video that caught her attention was his performance of the difficult Sondheim song 'Finishing the Hat' from the musical Sunday in the Park with George.
"It’s one of the most difficult Sondheim songs that there is out there...A lot of older actors can’t even handle that type of material, and he pulled it off pretty flawlessly,” Pillet says about his performance of the song.
Pillet eventually approached his mother, who initially declined the offer to sign up. But a few months later, the agent and Armitage’s mother agreed to meet so that she could learn more about the theatrical world. Armitage attended the meeting with Pillet dressed up as the Phantom of the Opera. He adopted the dress theme because he had plans to watch the show.
In 2017, he was cast as Ziggy Champion in the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning series Big Little Lies, which was based on the top-selling novel by Liane Moriarty.
“Before that his [audition] tapes were so good, even at that young age. I think he was, like, four at the time, but his tapes were incredible...And then Big Little Lies came around, and it all fell into place. It’s been kind of nonstop ever since,” she retrospects.
The same year, he guest-starred in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, playing a young child who has been kidnapped. Later, he would also appear in the Netflix Feature romantic drama film, Our Souls at Night alongside Jane Fonda and Robert Redford, American drama film I’m Not Here alongside J.K Simmons, and American Biographical drama film The Glass Castle.
'Young Sheldon'
Starring the buzziest sitcom of the year 2017, The Big Bang Theory spinoff Young Sheldon, Armitage plays the kid version of Jim Parsons's sarcastic but socially awkward titular character, Sheldon Cooper—a genius theoretical physicist possessing an IQ of 187 and highly narcissistic traits— of Big Bang Theory.
The Big Bang Theory is produced by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady that premiered on 24 September 2007 and ran for 12 seasons until 2019. Young Sheldon, a spinoff of CBS's long-running The Big Bang Theory, is the most-watched sitcom on network television. It stars Iain Armitage as the younger version of Jim Parsons' character from Big Bang Theory. Chuck Lorre Productions in collaboration with Warner Bros Television were executive produced by Lorre, Steven Molaro, Jim Parsons, Todd Spiewak, and Steve Holland.
Young Sheldon follows Sheldon (Iain Armitage) as he grows up in East Texas with his family and attends high school in 1989. The cast of Young Sheldon are; Mary, Sheldon's mother, who is played by Zoe Perry, who takes over the character from Laurie Metcalf, who played the actress's mother in the original series. Missy, Sheldon's twin sister, is played by Raegan Revord, and his father's role, George Cooper Sr. is played by actor Lance Barber. The show also features Wyatt McClure, Montana Jordan, and Annie Potts.
Parsons came up with the concept for the prequel series and emailed it to Lorre. Lorre then enlisted the help of Steve Molaro, and the three of them pitched the concept to Warner Bros. Television president Peter Roth, with CBS Corp.
Before getting the major role, he wasn’t a viewer of the science-themed comedy television series. However, he admired the work of Parson both on-screen and behind the scenes. Parson helped the young actor with some of his insights. “It is pretty lucky to get advice from the world’s greatest Sheldon expert,” Armitage shares.
Shooting During the Pandemic
During Pandemic, Armitage was filming the fourth season of Young Sheldon. However, the show was canceled after a member of the crew tested positive for COVID-19. The fourth season of the show began production on September 22 in Los Angeles. The season premiered on November 5, 2020, after filming was halted for a day in October because of a positive Covid test.
In an episode aptly titled 'A Sneeze, Detention, and Sissy Spacek,' Armitage's sitcom had a scene about a pandemic in which Sheldon Cooper's world was thrown into turmoil as the flu hit the area, leaving him convinced everyone was about to die.
The youngster wore a face mask and maintained a discreet distance from those around him, refusing to be in the same classroom as someone who sneezed.
New Seasons
The fifth season of the show debuted on CBS on 7 October 2021 and is currently airing, albeit with a mid-season hiatus. People seem to like Armitage's smart child so much that the show has been renewed for two more seasons, ensuring that it will at least make it to Season 7.
The agreement is the latest expansion order for The Big Bang Theory spinoff, which was renewed for two seasons in February 2019.
Is He Gay?
Armitage has not opened up about his sexuality. However, the actor, Jim Parsons, who plays adult Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory is gay. The New York Times reported on 23 May 2012, that Parsons is gay and has been in a relationship for the past ten years.
Net Worth
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Iain Armitage has a net worth of $4 million as of 2022. His primary source of earnings is through his career as an actor.
Armitage was paid $30,000 for each episode in season one. His total pre-tax profits were roughly $660,000 because there were 22 episodes. His compensation was upped to $31,200 each episode in season two, equating to about $686,000. His contract specifies that his income will be increased to $32,500 each episode in season three.
Interesting Facts
- Armitage is considered smart or brilliant in real life and on-screen due to his work as a lead character in Young Sheldon at such a young age.
- Young Sheldon was in the top ten most-watched TV comedies for the 2021-2022 season, beating off a slew of new sitcoms on competing networks.
