Warning! Spoilers ahead for Young Sheldon season 6.CBS sneaks a secret detail in Young Sheldon season 6 which reveals that George Cooper's death is close. The Big Bang Theory revealed a good deal of information about the Coopers' life in Texas via Sheldon's childhood stories. So, while George never got to appear in the nerd-centric sitcom, certain details about his life were already established before Lance Barber debuted as the character in the CBS prequel comedy. Those details include that of his death, which Young Sheldon season 6 revealed to be inching very near.

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Young Sheldon's George is very different from TBBT's. Sheldon and Mary's stories about the Cooper patriarch in the nerd-centric sitcom tend to be negative—something that the prequel comedy continually contradicts. Instead, Young Sheldon's George is a devoted dad and a loving husband. As CBS finds a way to reconcile the shows' different takes on Sheldon's dad, they also need to start laying the groundwork for his impending death because Young Sheldon season 6 confirmed that it is coming up.

Young Sheldon Season 6 Is Now Set In 1993

CBS has been slowing down Young Sheldon's storytelling for a while now. 14-year-old Iain Armitage is playing 12-year-old Sheldon in season 6 despite the show starting with both being 9 years old. Its prequel nature means that it has a pre-determined end, and because of its success, the network is impeding it as long as possible. Additionally, George's cheating scandal and subsequent death have also been delayed. However, with Young Sheldon season 6 now set in 1993 as revealed by Sheldon watching Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's premiere in episode 10, it means that George Cooper's death is only a year later since Sheldon was 14 years old when he died.

The Big Bang Theory didn't reveal when exactly Sheldon's dad George died, but it has been established that it was unexpected. Considering the comedy's timeline, Sheldon and Missy should turn 13 years old in less than two in-universe months. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine premiered on January 3, 1993, while the Cooper twins' birthday is on February 26. If Young Sheldon maintains this storytelling pace, George's death should take place sometime in Young Sheldon season 7, which is already guaranteed following CBS' three-year renewal of the family sitcom in 2021. This means that the network would have no choice but to tackle the tragedy.

What Needs To Happen Before George's Young Sheldon's Death

There are still things that need to happen before the tragedy of Sheldon's dad's death, including George Cooper's affair. The show floated that George may be Brenda's secret Young Sheldon boyfriend in "Pancake Sundays and Textbook Flirting" which could mean that it's already in the works. The plotline has been going on for a while now, but because the show refocused its attention on Georgie and Mandy's pregnancy arc, the narrative was sidelined.

Season 6 even saw Mary and Brenda have an emotional discussion that seemed to put a halt to that idea.

Assuming that George and Brenda are having a secret affair, then Young Sheldon no longer needs to build up to Sheldon's story about catching his dad having sexual relations with another woman. It will, however, paint Brenda as a very good liar since she dissuaded Mary from the idea. If Brenda isn't the woman George is with, the series will have to introduce someone for him quickly in season 7.

Aside from George's cheating scandal, a couple of other incidents still need to happen before George Cooper's death in Young Sheldon.

That includes Sheldon's story about catching him stealing money from his employer, which could be Dale if he is still working in his shop part-time despite reclaiming his Medford High School employment. The boy genius also shared his dad broke his clavicle after accidentally tripping on a staircase experiment that he was doing.

Season 6 Foreshadowed George Cooper's Death In A Big Way

In addition to the reveal that season 6 takes place in 1993 following episode 10, Young Sheldon's dad's death was teased with an interesting exchange in episode 16.

In that particular episode, Sheldon's sister and her friend Paige stole George's truck and got out of town for a little freedom. That freedom only lasted a few hours before the police pulled them over and called their parents. It's once the parents are on their way that the series teased George Cooper's impending death.

Sheldon's parents got some unasked-for advice about their marriage on the ride to retrieve the kids, and it prompted an interesting exchange between the two. While Mary asserted that the Coopers would not be getting divorced, despite their marital problems, George agreed by saying, "Over my dead body" would they divorce.

Mary proceeded to emphasize his point with, "That's exactly how it's going to end." While the lines are played for laughs, the exchange foreshadows the death discussed in The Big Bang Theory.

Will The Ominous Young Sheldon Dad Death Happen In Season 7?

Because of The Big Bang Theory, fans of the series know that Sheldon's dad dies when he is 14, about a year after Sheldon discovers his father having an affair. Season 7 seems the most likely point for George's death. The series has continually hinted at George Cooper growing close to another woman without explicitly addressing the infidelity yet.

Though Sheldon has been 12 for multiple seasons of Young Sheldon, the real-life age of actor Ian Armitage is outstripping his character, so Sheldon will have to, at the very least, get to age 14 in season 7 of Young Sheldon.

If the series waits too much longer to reach Sheldon's dad's death, the show might have to skip it and age Sheldon up to account for Armitage's real-life growth. That seems unlikely as seasons 5 and 6 of the series have given the cast increasingly dramatic storylines to play, like Georgie becoming a father and Missy's rebellion. Though the series is a sitcom, it's not without its dramatic moments, and they could all be leading to George's death in Young Sheldon.

Young Sheldon has been renewed by CBS through season 7, but not season 8, making season 7 the most likely spot for George Cooper to die. The death may even occur near the end of season 7, unlike what most fans theorized prior to season 6, leading up to a dramatic moment in Sheldon's young life.

Could Young Sheldon Not Kill Off George?

CBS hinted that Young Sheldon isn't killing George after co-creator Steve Molaro admits to regretting the Cooper patriarch's infidelity narrative in The Big Bang Theory which is a precursor to his death.

Sadly, considering how big of an impact both incidents have had on Sheldon's life, it's difficult to totally disregard them, otherwise, CBS could end up breaking the established canon beyond repair. That said, losing George will be a big blow to Young Sheldon's storytelling—assuming that it continues beyond his death, which could realistically pan out in season 7.

Still, there's a way to keep George in Young Sheldon. CBS could finally let go of the notion that the prequel exists in the same reality as The Big Bang Theory. Instead, it could be a narrative set in a different universe that tackles alternative scenarios for the Cooper family. Considering Sheldon's interests, using the concept of the multiverse actually makes sense.