Stephen Hawking has died and people on Twitter are very worried about Sheldon Cooper
While people all over the world are mourning the death of Stephen Hawking, it's likely no one is taking it harder than Sheldon Cooper.
No one who’s a fictional character on TV, anyway.
Sad day for Sheldon Cooper and Hawking's family & friends @bigbangtheory RIP Stephen Hawking pic.twitter.com/5IsFIXQCXd
— 요정 (@buffay247) March 14, 2018
Hawking, who died early Wednesday at 76, was a British theoreticial physicist considered by many during his lifetime to be the world’s greatest scientist.
Hawking, who refused to be limited by a 1963 diagnosis of ALS, was also the idol of Cooper, the nerd-meets-annoying-know-it-all character played to Emmy-winning perfection by Jim Parsons.
Sad news! Stephen Hawking has passed away at 76. He was Sheldon Cooper's idol #BigBangTheory 📺 pic.twitter.com/D3eR8vp0w2
— YoMzansi LIVE (@yomzansiLIVE) March 14, 2018
And so naturally, it was Sheldon whom a lot of people immediately thought of when news of Hawking’s death broke.
After reading about the death of Stephen Hawking, the very next thing I did...after freezing for a couple of minutes...was to imagine what would happen to Sheldon Cooper.....
— RUKAIYA (@RUKI_m98) March 14, 2018
Indeed, Twitter is expressing nearly as much sympathy and concern for Sheldon as it is for real life folks who knew and loved Hawking.
Stephen Hawking was a truly great and inspiring man. He will be missed by many, and I hope Sheldon Cooper is gonna be okay!?! @bigbangtheory #stephanhawking 💔💔
— Katie x👸🏼 (@KatieRushe1) March 14, 2018
And:
This whole Stephen Hawking news , Im legit just worried about Sheldon Cooper .
— - Guy . (@Just_Dxvid) March 14, 2018
And:
RIP Stephen Hawking, someone should check on sheldon cooper. pic.twitter.com/9itZvNLs6b
— Asmodeus (@lildungus) March 14, 2018
Some tweeters were feeling almost as sorry for Sheldon’s fellow scientist, former roommate and best buddy, Leonard:
It is a very sad day in the life of Sheldon Cooper today as his idol Stephen Hawking dies at age 76.
— الملكة (@naiiimah) March 14, 2018
Sending our sincere thoughts and prayers to him and especially to Leonard because he has to deal with a cranky Sheldon for the foreseeable future
Not all of the outpouring consisted of sad Tweets, though. Hawking was a fan of the top-rated CBS sitcom and “appeared” on the show at least four times (his voice would be heard on the phone or on a character’s computer). The running joke was that the supremely-confident-in-his-own-brilliance Sheldon could never quite obtain Hawking’s approval:
Stephen Hawking, the most brilliant man of our lifetime, passes away at 76
— Troy Hughes™ (@TommySledge) March 14, 2018
Despite his many awards and accolades, his greatest achievement (in my eyes) ... was putting Sheldon Cooper in his place #BigBangTheory pic.twitter.com/L9RizMnEyi
Not that he didn’t keep trying:
R.I.P. Stephen Hawking, the only man to beat Sheldon Cooper at Words with Friends. pic.twitter.com/ppGKmxBM8n
— Mary Ann Evans (@kosarsbaby) March 14, 2018
And failing:
What does Sheldon Cooper and a black hole have in common? They both suck.
— Scott Pua (@scottylosophy) March 14, 2018
-Stephen Hawking, The Big Bang Theoryhttps://t.co/q35x0Dsdn1
They finally met in person in the Season Five episode, “The Hawking Excitation.” where Hawking points out a math mistake of Sheldon’s. No word from Sheldon himself yet on the loss of his idol (Parsons isn’t on Twitter), but the cast and creators of “The Big Bang Theory” have made clear their affection for Hawking went far beyond the great plot points he inspired:
In loving memory of Stephen Hawking. It was an honor to have him on The #BigBangTheory. Thank you for inspiring us and the world. pic.twitter.com/9rWoYqIToy
— The Big Bang Theory (@bigbangtheory) March 14, 2018
“The Big Bang Theory” is preempted this Thursday night as CBS airs the first round of March Madness games. But a lot of the show’s fans are figuring the show -- and Sheldon -- will take note of Hawking’s passing in some way.
Sheldon Cooper will be devastated Stephen Hawking died 💔😭 #BigBangTheory will probally make an episode on it
— 💞💋Rachel Carter💞🌸💫 (@XoBabyDollXo) March 14, 2018
