Why Mandy’s Brother Was Recast in the Georgie & Mandy Spinoff md13

The news that Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage is recasting a supporting star from Young Sheldon is not as shocking as it initially seemed. Young Sheldon’s ending left plot holes open thanks to the knotty, contradictory canon of the spinoff and its predecessor, The Big Bang Theory. However, at least one of these unanswered questions was kept unresolved on purpose. Viewers may have been frustrated when Meemaw’s character change was unexplained and Dale’s fate wasn’t specified, but there is a good reason that Young Sheldon’s ending never clarified why the marriage between Mandy and Sheldon’s brother Georgie failed.

In The Big Bang Theory season 11, episode 23, “The Sibling Realignment,” Sheldon’s brother Georgie mentioned his “Ex-wife.” This proved that his marriage to Mandy wouldn’t last, but the cause of their break-up was left unclear. Judging by its title alone, Young Sheldon’s spinoff Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage will explore exactly why Sheldon’s brother wasn’t able to make his marriage work. The spinoff will likely center Georgie and Mandy’s early years together since Young Sheldon ended shortly after the pair got married. In the process, the series will bring back members of both Mandy and Georgie’s families.

Connor May Have Been Recast Due To A Bigger Role In Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage

Connor Will Likely Play A Big Part In Young Sheldon’s Sequel

One character who appears in both Young Sheldon and Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage is Mandy’s younger brother, Connor. However, Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage will recast Joseph Apollonio’s version of Connor from Young Sheldon, with Dougie Baldwin now playing Mandy’s brother in the spinoff. Since Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage will focus on Mandy more than Young Sheldon ever did, it makes sense for her brother to take on a bigger role in the spinoff. In this regard, Baldwin’s casting makes sense since the Nowhere Boys star already appeared in The Big Bang Theory/ Young Sheldon co-creator Chuck Lorre’s earlier show Disjointed.

Baldwin has more experience as an actor than Apollonio, having starred in Upper Middle Bogan, Nowhere Boys, and the Nowhere Boys spinoff movie The Book of Shadows before appearing in Disjointed. Dougie Baldwin is prolific despite his youth, and his previous work with Lorre may have led the producer to think he was uniquely suited to the role of Connor in Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage. It is also important to note that scheduling conflicts may have also been a factor, since Apollonio recently had a role in FBI: International and has an upcoming role in the TV series Broadway Books.

Baldwin’s Connor is still likely to play a major part in the proceedings. According to Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage’s official description (via TVLine), Connor is a struggling artist who doesn’t fit in with his small-town family. Baldwin’s character could play a similar role to Sheldon, acting as a quirky, earnest, intellectual free-thinker whose family struggles to find common ground with him. This role could be a big ask for the actor, but he is an experienced leading man with years of varied roles.

At only 16 years old, Baldwin scored a supporting role in the Australian sitcom Upper Middle Bogan. The show centered on a pair of families from radically different social classes drawn together by unexpected revelations. After that, Baldwin starred in Nowhere Boys, a teen fantasy drama where he played a misunderstood young goth who becomes trapped between dimensions alongside a few mismatched classmates. In 2017, Baldwin scored a supporting role in Disjointed, playing a cannabis grower in Kathy Bates’ dispensary. The short-lived sitcom was a miss for Chuck Lorre but may have led to Baldwin’s casting in Young Sheldon’s spinoff.

Missy, Meemaw, and the rest of Young Sheldon’s existing characters now that Sheldon is living in California and George Sr is dead. The spinoff can’t rely too heavily on these supporting stars or Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage will run the risk of feeling like Young Sheldon without Sheldon. However, the spinoff also can’t simply ignore the existing supporting roles that both the Coopers and the McAllisters played throughout the original show. Connor’s recasting makes his role hard to work out given his limited Young Sheldon screen time.

In his lone Young Sheldon appearance, Apollonio’s Connor was the black sheep of the McAllister family. A moody teen who preferred The Smiths to Guns ’N’ Roses, Connor was comically out of place in Young Sheldon‘s small-town setting. It is not yet clear whether Baldwin’s take on Connor will be the exact same, although his description does move away from Young Sheldon’s version of the character in one respect. The Connor seen in Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage will be “Coddled by his mother,” whereas Young Sheldon’s version of Connor didn’t seem to be particularly favored by his parents.

Both of Mandy’s parents will also play a role in the series, and Meemaw, Mary, and Missy will all also appear in the spinoff. Annie Potts’ Meemaw ended up living with Dale in Young Sheldon’s series finale, while Mary was quickly becoming the religious zealot viewers remember from The Big Bang Theory in the last episode. Not all of Young Sheldon’s storylines were wrapped up neatly, and Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage now has a chance to remedy this as most of Georgie’s family return in the new show.

However, the series will need to tread carefully. If Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage focuses too much screen time on Georgie’s family, the show’s title will become a misnomer. That said, if the series neglects characters like Connor and Missy, viewers will miss out on Young Sheldon’s warm family comedy. Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage needs to strike the right balance between centering on its eponymous couple and incorporating their family into the show’s storylines. In this regard, having a sitcom veteran like Baldwin on board is a good thing for Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage as the series continues Young Sheldon’s story.