Chaos theory
As The Big Bang Theory's socially inept brainiac Sheldon Cooper, Jim Parsons is often called upon to spit out tongue-twisting mouthfuls of intricately crafted, physics-laced dialogue. That he does so and still manages to imbue it with meaning — and Sheldon's prickly, persnickety intentions — is nothing short of a science-defying miracle. "There's no way I'm going to ever be able to grasp most of these concepts," says Parsons, chuckling. "But the good thing is I don't really need the full concept, I just need the basics, so I can understand what point he's trying to make by bringing it up. Once I get just deep enough to connect, I go, 'I see.' Then I'm done."
Parsons' hilariously meticulous characterization helped make The Big Bang Theory a hit for CBS last season and has earned him many a glowing review. The show, which focuses on the exploits of Sheldon and equally geeky roommate Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki), returns for a second season Sept. 22. Despite being conceived by sitcom mastermind Chuck Lorre (Two and a Half Men, Dharma & Greg), the show didn't always appear destined for success. Once Parsons landed the role, a pilot was shot but not picked up. After rewriting and cast changes, a new pilot was filmed, but there were months of waiting in between. Parsons was living in New York at the time and decided to take a gamble and relocate.
"I knew we were on hold to shoot it again; it was the craziest time, because you're in the very enviable position of knowing you have work coming up, but it was maddening at the same time," he says. "That waiting period was crazy. I decided that whatever happened, I would move. I thought, I've had a great time in New York, but a lot of my work's coming out of L.A. right now, and I think it would be smart to spend a few years out here and form some relationships. So I moved in March of last year, and in May the show got picked up." He pauses for a moment, then chuckles. "I think that's accidentally practicing the Secret, actually."
Parsons doesn't recall exactly when he was bitten by the acting bug, but he knows that it occurred fairly early in his childhood. "My mother had this list of questions you asked your child every year, and it was like, 'What's your favorite color? What's your favorite TV show?' and it says, 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' " he remembers. "And from very early on, I started saying 'movie star,' which — now I look back and I have no idea what I thought. I didn't know what a celebrity was. But I guess, really, I just wanted to be an actor in some way."
He honed his craft at the Old Globe Theatre/University of San Diego, eventually earning a master's in acting. As part of the program, Parsons participated in a New York showcase that landed him several meetings with agencies, including Innovative Artists. He signed on and has been with the group ever since. "They always were very supportive and kept putting me out there for things — whatever form of belief or gamble that is, I don't know, but they kept sending me," he says with a laugh.
Over the years, he has appeared in a variety of stage productions (The Castle with the Manhattan Ensemble Theater, As You Like It at the Houston Shakespeare Festival) and TV shows (Judging Amy, Ed), but one standout role that still attracts attention is his brief but memorable turn as a Klingon-speaking, cereal-chomping Medieval Times "knight in training" in Zach Braff's Garden State. Parsons won the part after auditioning for another character with Garden State casting director Avy Kaufman. "I loved that [the scene] managed to walk that line of absurdity — it balanced it so well," he says. "Lucky Charms and a full suit of armor. That's incredible. You almost don't have to do very much in that situation, just say the lines."
And though he's getting considerably more screen time as one of Big Bang's leads, Parsons doesn't necessarily feel he's made it. He still marvels at the number of hoops actors have to jump through at every stage in their careers. "You feel like you've gotten through so many steps when you finally get an agent; you can't imagine how many hoops there are that you don't even know about," he says. "Half the time, you don't even know how hard it is for your agents to get you an audition until you find out later, 'Good Lord, that barely happened.'"
Bio briefs
Was initially confused about who was behind The Big Bang Theory: "I'm not great with names, and I went in there expecting to meet Chuck Woolery, the guy from Love Connection. I thought, I didn't know he was writing at all, and my agency sounded excited about it, so what's he doing?"
Uses 3-by-5 note cards to keep track of his longer stretches of Big Bang dialogue. "I put my little cue line on the front and my lines on the back. I just pace around the house and drill them."
