Neil Patrick Harris Says “How I Met Your Mother” Worked Because Cast Was 'Worried It Was Going to be Canceled' (Exclusive)
Neil Patrick Harris Says “How I Met Your Mother” Worked Because Cast Was 'Worried It Was Going to be Canceled' (Exclusive)
Virginia ChamleeFri, March 13, 2026 at 3:00 PM UTC
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Neil Patrick HarrisCredit: Laurent Hou / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty; Ron P. Jaffe/FOX -
Neil Patrick Harris is opening up about the success of How I Met Your Mother
Harris played philandering lothario Barney Stinson on the show, which ran from 2005 to 2014
In a new interview, he says the cast and crew always worried the show would be cancelled
Neil Patrick Harris is sharing more about why How I Met Your Mother resonated with audiences the way it did — which the actor says is partly due to the cast and crew being "hungry" for the show to succeed.
The sitcom was told in flashbacks by lead character Ted Mosby in 2030, who is detailing to his children the long journey to meet their mother and sharing his life with friends Marshall, Lily, Robin and Barney (a philandering lothario played by Harris) in New York City.
On a new, two-part episode of the How We Made Your Mother podcast, which is produced in partnership with Audacy and The Office Ladies Network, hosts Josh Radnor (who starred as Ted) and co-creator Craig Thomas spoke to Harris about the show and its continued resonance.
“We never felt secure," Harris, 52, said of himself and his fellow cast and crew members. "We thought we might get canceled all the time. That hunger kept everyone sharp — writers, actors, everyone. We weren’t coasting.”
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Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson on How I Met Your MotherCredit: Eric McCandless/FOX
Elsewhere on the podcast, Harris noted that he felt "insecure" while playing Barney, saying, “I was needy and insecure as an actor back then. I never finished a scene thinking, ‘Mic drop, nailed it.’ I was always asking, ‘You think that’s good? Pam, are you happy? Do you want to do it again?’ That insecurity absolutely played into the bravado.”
And though Barney was known for his confident (bordering on arrogant) demeanor, Harris said he felt a connection to the character, whom he viewed as secretly sensitive. "I’ve always felt Barney was kind of broken. He wore armor. The suit was armor. He hid sincerity and vulnerability behind bravado because that’s how he survived.”
The show premiered on Sept. 19, 2005, and the cast looked back in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE in 2025, with Harris recalling how they "were all just having the best time" filming the hit show's first season.
"For the first really four seasons of that show, we did not think there would be another season, so every time we finished, we thought we were done," the actor added at the time. "And then, it was a nice surprise when we were coming back."
The first part of the two-part How We Made Your Mother episode featuring Harris will be released on Monday, March 16, and the second installment will drop on Monday, March 23.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
