The Big Bang Theory's Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco to Host Unraveling the Mystery: A Big Bang Farewell Special

The Big Bang Theory will soon be airing its final episode ever, meaning that fans only have a matter of weeks to emotionally prepare for the series' goodbye. Thankfully, it sounds like fans will also soon get a pretty big behind-the-scenes look at the series.

CBS has announced Unraveling the Mystery: A Big Bang Farewell, a new television special that will air the same night as the series finale. The half-hour special will air following Big Bang's final episode, as well as the season two finale of the show's spinoff, Young Sheldon.

The retrospective will be hosted by series stars Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco, as they lead fans on a trip down memory lane, sharing some of the best-kept backstage secrets and personal memories from the past 12 years. They will reveal their favorite moments playing beloved characters Leonard and Penny, and revisit some of the most memorable stories from "The Big Bang Theory Stage." In addition, the special will feature a tour of the iconic sets, including Leonard and Sheldon's apartment. This special farewell will include unforgettable clips and interviews to celebrate this beloved series.

If that isn't enough, the night of programming will be capped off by The Big Bang Theory's cast appearing on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

After twelve years and over 270 episodes, The Big Bang Theory's final season was announced last year, due in large part to star Jim Parsons wanting to pursue various other endeavors.

"It's both as complex and as simple as just feeling innately that it was time. It speaks to a lot of things, none of them bad," Parsons shared with Entertainment Weekly. "There is no negative reason to stop doing Big Bang. It felt like we have been able to do this for so many years now, it doesn't feel like there is anything left on the table. Not that we couldn't keep doing it, but it feels like we've chewed all the meat off this bone."

"I was laughing," Kaley Cuoco added of the series nearing its end. "I was like, 'How are we gonna shoot that last episode?' I was hoping we were gonna pre-shoot a lot of it 'cause I think there are gonna be a lot of tears. It's gonna be tough, it's gonna be a lot of emotions and I love our crew. I just love the people that we're with every day so, you know, all good things come to an end. Everyone is still madly in love with each other. We're all OK with the choice. We've just grown up together, so it's our adult decision."

Will you be tuning in to this The Big Bang Theory retrospective? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

The Big Bang Theory airs Thursdays at 8/7c on CBS. As mentioned above, the series finale will air on Thursday, May 16th.