Josh Radnor has confirmed that the main cast of How I Met Your Mother are not close anymore 12 years after the sitcom ended.
The 52-year-old actor, who portrayed Ted Mosby on the hit CBS comedy, said he no longer keeps in regular contact with co-stars Neil Patrick Harris, Jason Segel, Alyson Hannigan, and Cobie Smolders.
Speaking on the Half the Picture podcast, Radnor explained that working together for nine seasons from 2005 to 2014 was an intense experience, but the group drifted apart once production wrapped.
"I don't mean that in any dramatic way," Radnor said on the podcast, adding, "I have love for all these people." He compared their relationship to college, where friends see each other daily before dispersing to live separate lives.
Although the actors do not keep in touch regularly, Radnor noted they still cross paths. He last saw Hannigan at his 2024 wedding to wife Jordana Jacobs, completed joint podcast appearances with Harris and Smolders, and occasionally exchanges texts with Segel about funny memories from set.
Radnor also addressed public expectations about their real-life relationships. "People really want to believe that me and Neil and Jason are like hitting bars in New York City together," he said. "They really want to believe that. And it's a little more like family than friends where you don't get to choose your family."
Reflecting on his sudden rise to fame during the show's run, Radnor admitted he was unprepared for the loss of privacy. "It was destabilizing to my sense of self to lose anonymity," he confessed, "to be so visible, to have people both love you and not like you, frankly. I didn't want to be overly associated with it because I thought it was the end of my acting life."
The actor subsequently turned down similar television roles to avoid being typecast. "Any hint of the single guy in the big city looking for love I was like, 'No thank you,'" Radnor said. "I was offered those roles but I was like, 'I can't do them.' I had more tools in my toolbox."
Origins and early casting choices
The creation of How I Met Your Mother began when 20th Century Fox asked creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas to pitch sitcom ideas. The Wesleyan University graduates drew inspiration from their post-college years living in New York City and writing for The Late Show With David Letterman.
Bays told Cleveland Magazine in 2008 that he wanted to get married while living as a single man in New York, which felt unusual at the time. Real events inspired plotlines, including Bays inviting a date to a wedding without a plus-one and Thomas briefly separating from his college sweetheart, now-wife Rebecca Alson-Milkman. Thomas revealed on Reddit in 2014 that his wife insisted Alyson Hannigan play the character based on her.
American Pie actor Jason Biggs was originally offered the lead role of sensitive architect Ted Mosby but turned it down. Biggs admitted on a 2021 episode of SiriusXM's The Covino and Rich Show that passing on the part was probably his biggest regret. Scott Foley was also offered the role before Columbus native Josh Radnor was cast.
Jennifer Love Hewitt was approached to play Robin Scherbatsky but chose to star in The Ghost Whisperer instead. Casting director Megan Branman spotted Canadian actress Cobie Smulders on a drama series and selected her for the role of the news anchor.
Jim Parsons auditioned for playboy Barney Stinson before starring in The Big Bang Theory, later telling Live With Kelly in 2015 that Neil Patrick Harris was better suited for the part. Thomas noted the character was written as a Jack Black type, but Harris won the role after performing a dive roll during his audition and crashing into a wall.
Jason Segel was the first choice to play environmentalist Marshall Eriksen. Thomas wanted a tall actor to represent his own presence, and producers waited for the 6-foot-4 Freaks and Geeks star to finish another project before filming.
Behind the scenes anecdotes and guest stars
Barney's famous wingman catchphrase originated from Bays' former boss at Letterman, who would introduce him to women in bars by asking if they had met Carter. The gang's favorite watering hole, MacLaren's Pub, was modeled after McGee's, a midtown pub frequented by the show's creators. The pub and bartender Carl were named after Bays' assistant, Carl McLaren.
Real experiences continued to fuel storylines, including an episode where Robin gives Lily a vibrator that is opened in front of relatives. Bays revealed on Reddit that the recurring slap bets were based on games he played with high school friend Jon Read.
The show's theme song, Hey Beautiful, was performed by The Solids, a band featuring Thomas on drums and Bays on guitar and vocals. Radnor also suggested musical acts for the series, including Bloc Party, whose music was featured in the season one finale after Radnor took Bays to see them at Coachella.
To foster chemistry, the cast made a point of walking into table reads together. Radnor recalled on CBS This Morning in 2014 that Segel encouraged them to arrive early to share the free breakfast provided on set.
A guest appearance by Britney Spears as receptionist Abby in season three drew more than 10 million viewers, securing the show's renewal status. Other guest stars over nine seasons included Katie Holmes, Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, Mandy Moore, Enrique Iglesias, and Bryan Cranston.
Spouses of the core cast also made appearances. Harris' husband David Burtka played Scooter, Hannigan's husband Alexis Denisof played Sandy Rivers, and Smulders' husband Taran Killam played Gary Blauman. Hannigan told The Huffington Post that her daughter was turned down for a cameo as Lily and Marshall's child for being too old.
Smulders spent 16 hours straight dancing to film the Robin Sparkles music videos during single extra shooting days. Meanwhile, Harris secretly pushed for a romance between Barney and Robin by giving Smulders extra glances during their shared scenes.
The finale reaction and cast keepsakes
Cristin Milioti made her debut as Tracy McConnell, the titular mother, in the 2013 season eight finale. Milioti revealed on Conan in 2014 that she was stopped by police during her first night driving in Los Angeles and failed a sobriety test because she could not stop laughing, though breathalyzers proved she was sober. Extras in her first scene with the yellow umbrella were played by show staff.
Creators had a backup plan if the series was canceled early, which would have made baker Victoria, played by Ashley Williams, the mother. The eventual finale proved divisive when Ted reunited with Robin after Tracy's death. Bays and Thomas defended the ending on Twitter, while Hannigan noted that a 14-hour table read was cut down significantly, removing a funeral scene that would have helped audiences process the story.
An alternate ending was included as a bonus feature on the complete series DVD collection. Radnor revealed to Vulture that creators told him about the mother's death during season one, while Milioti learned of her character's fate from Thomas at a Christmas party.
Child actors Lyndsy Fonseca and David Henrie filmed all of Ted's children's reactions during season one under strict non-disclosure agreements. When production wrapped, cast members kept iconic props from set: Radnor took the blue French horn, Smulders kept Robin Sparkles' denim jacket, Harris took the MacLaren's booth and the Playbook, Hannigan took a red phone booth, and Bays kept the apartment swords. Fans were also able to purchase Barney's Bro Code book in stores.
