Emily Osment was 30 and Montana Jordan was 18 when their Young Sheldon roles called for them to kiss. She raised her discomfort with producer Tim Marx and asked for an intimacy coordinator, who joined them for later episodes as their characters’ relationship developed.
Osment recalls the experience in Jessica Radloff’s book, Young Sheldon: The (Juicier-Than-Meemaw’s-Brisket) Inside Story of the Hit Comedy. She played Mandy McAllister opposite Jordan’s Georgie Cooper on the CBS prequel to The Big Bang Theory.
“That made me uncomfortable. He was a baby! A baby with a mullet,” Osment said of their 12-year age gap.
An intimacy coordinator couldn’t be brought in that late on the day she spoke to Marx, she explained, but one was present for the next few episodes. “It made everything easier having one there. I think it’s something that’s really important.”
She also wanted Jordan to have a chance to say what he needed.
“I don’t know if Montana even knew if he could ask for that. Like, let’s give him the option, too. Make him comfortable,” Osment said. “And he’s such a sweet kid, I think he would just eat his discomfort.”
Director Alex Reid acknowledged that the crew “totally dropped the ball” with the kissing scenes, even though the actors had no sex scenes on the show. He recalled showing Osment a photo he’d taken between takes of a car scene, with the actors looking in different directions. She told him they’d both felt uncomfortable because they didn’t know each other.
Co-creator Steve Molaro said Osment had “every right to ask” for an intimacy coordinator and that she eventually felt “comfortable without one.”
Their characters’ age gap was also part of the story: Georgie was 17 and Mandy was 29 when he got her pregnant. He’d initially claimed to be 21, while she’d said she was 25. Their relationship continued in Georgie and Mandy’s First Marriage, which premiered on CBS in October 2024, 5 months after Young Sheldon ended.