From 2005 to 2014, we were all captivated by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas’ CBS hit sitcom How I Met Your Mother. While the main cast of Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, and Alyson Hannigan was incredibly popular and contributed to the success of the show, Neil Patrick Harris, the Marvel star who voiced Peter Parker / Spider-Man in Spider-Man: The New Animated Series, was the show’s driving force.
Well, How I Met Your Mother (HIMYM) told the story of Ted Mosby’s (Josh Radnor) encounter with the titular ‘Mother’ (Cristin Milioti) over the course of nine seasons. The main HIMYM stars—Marshall Eriksen (Jason Segel), Lily Aldrin (Alyson Hannigan), Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders), and Barney Stinson (Harris)—joined Ted as he spent his adult years navigating New York City.
Yet, did you know that Harris received the highest salary out of the five main cast members, while the other four were paid equally?
Neil Patrick Harris Earned More Than The Rest of How I Met Your Mother Cast
Neil Patrick Harris, who is renowned for his mesmerizing portrayal of Barney Stinson, was able to negotiate an incredible salary that was almost twice as much as his HIMYM co-stars’. The Grammy Award-nominated actor made $400,000 per episode during the final season of How I Met Your Mother, but the other cast members only received $225,000 each.
Naturally, these salaries have increased over the course of the show’s nine seasons to reflect the actors’ success. Playing a straight role in How I Met Your Mother was something Neil Patrick Harris had no objections to doing. According to the actor, who spoke to The Times, the role he played was “nothing like me”:
“As an actor you certainly hope you can be a visible option for all kinds of different roles. I played a character [in How I Met Your Mother] for nine years who was nothing like me. It is most important to hire the best actor.”
Thus, the idea of a straight man portraying a gay character, according to Harris, was “s*xy”:
“There’s something sexy about casting a straight actor to play a gay role, if they’re willing to invest a lot into it. There’s a nervousness that comes from the newness of it all.”
Neil Patrick Harris Disapproved of the How I Met Your Mother Title?
Every actor has a harrowing audition story. There is no guarantee that the preparation and patience will be worthwhile in the end. Characters may also change significantly on screen as they appear on the page. Oh, and did we forget to mention that an actor may occasionally be perplexed by the show’s title?
In an interview with GQ, Neil Patrick Harris discussed his initial impressions of How I Met Your Mother, saying the following:
“I got an audition for this show called ‘How I Met Your Mother,’ which I thought was a terrible title, when you have ‘Friends’ and ‘Three’s Company,’ you know, something that looks good on a cap. […] And I thought it would just be up to pilot and would never go, because of the title. Who names a show ‘How I Met Your Mother’? There’s not even any rhyming to it. Like, a bunch of basic words put together as a sentence; it’s not a title. But I digress.”
Interestingly enough, Harris also explained how his character’s transformation was entirely attributed to his carefree attitude during the audition:
“I read the part and it was to play someone who was rotund, cigar-smoking, Jack Black [kind of character] and I thought … I’m not going to get this job.”
In the end, it turned out that his enthusiasm for the role of Barney Stinson was exactly what got him the job in the first place. His last film appearance was in Tom Gormican’s action comedy film The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
Meanwhile, How I Met Your Mother is streaming on Hulu.
Source- The Times; Screen Rant; GQ
