McKenna Grace’s Paige Swanson doesn’t show up on “The Big Bang Theory.” The character debuted on “Young Sheldon” after the flagship show aired its final episode, so her absence is completely understandable. However, Sheldon Cooper’s (Iain Armitage) intellectual rival (and first crush) is a big part of his childhood, and it’s strange that that she doesn’t show up in the final season for one last hurrah. Unfortunately, bringing Grace back into the fold wasn’t possible at the time, and the creators of “Young Sheldon” didn’t have any more plans for the character.

While speaking to TVLine, co-showrunner Steve Holland revealed that Grace was busy with her movie commitments when “Young Sheldon’s” seventh and final season entered production. As such, her services were difficult to acquire, but Holland is happy with the way her story panned out. In his own words:

“When we got into this season, especially with it being a shortened season, we never thought that [Paige’s storyline] was an arc that needed more closing than it got. There was a parallel; she was a bit of a mirror image of Sheldon — a different way that Sheldon could have turned out — and I think we saw that play out.”

While Paige’s arc is given a structured beginning, middle, and end, some “Young Sheldon” fans worried about her fate after the series concluded. A cameo in the final season could have eased those concerns, as her last appearance sees her get arrested for stealing a truck.

Paige Swanson flirts with the wild side in “Young Sheldon” season 6, showing that she’s more of a regular teenager than her fellow young prodigy Sheldon Cooper. In the episode titled “A Frat Party, a Sleepover, and the Mother of All Blisters,” she gets drunk and smokes at a party. Meanwhile, her final outing, “A Stolen Truck and Going on the Lam,” follows her and Missy Cooper (Raegan Revord) as they steal a vehicle, try to leave the state, and get arrested — ironically, Revord got into a car accident before shooting this “Young Sheldon” episode, but she managed to power through.

Given that McKenna Grace’s character was in her rebellious phase during her final “Young Sheldon” appearances, some fans have theorized that she went down a dark path of booze, drugs, and decadence. The show’s creators have since dismissed those claims, noting that people shouldn’t read too much her life story. That said, Paige’s “Young Sheldon” journey ends after Missy’s parents stop them from hanging out ever again, and we never find out what happens to her. Where’s the closure in that? 

Maybe this isn’t the end of Paige’s time in the franchise, though. The “Georgie and Mandy’s First Marriage” spin-off could give the character a fitting farewell, but it seems unlikely. Grace’s schedule is pretty full these days, so maybe it’s time to accept that her arc is over once and for all.