'Big Bang Theory' showrunner Steve Holland on ending the series: 'Finales are hard'

BURBANK, Calif. - The running theme for the cast and crew on the set of the final season of "The Big Bang Theory" is the idea that it's the senior year of a 12-year sitcom school - which explains why the actors, writers and production team posted yearbook photos around the soundstage on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank.

Charged with leading the class to its graduation is Steve Holland, showrunner of the CBS comedy. The longest-running multi-camera sitcom will air a special hourlong series finale Thursday

A few weeks before the goodbye, sitting in his orange-hued Warner Bros. office, Holland is calm, not at all the ball of nerves you might expect for someone attempting to bring one of television's most successful shows to a satisfying end.

"Everyone is trying to enjoy this as much as they can," he says. "I think we're all incredibly aware of what a special thing this is."

Holland joined the