Legen — Wait for it! — Dary: Hilary Duff is Set to Star in Hulu’s How I Met Your Mother Sequel

Leia IdlibyApr 21st, 2021, 2:51 pm
 

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

After several attempts to launch a How I Met Your Mother spin-off series, Hilary Duff has been tapped to “suit up” and star in the sequel, titled How I Met Your Father. 

Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger, This Is Us co-showrunners and the co-creators of Love, Victor, will serve as both writers and executive producers. How I Met Your Mother co-creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas are also involved in the spinoff as executive producers.

“We are beyond excited to be bringing How I Met Your Father to Hulu,” said Aptaker and Berger in a statement. “Carter and Craig’s iconic original series revolutionized the half-hour comedy, and we are so honored to be carrying the torch forward for the next generation — and with Hilary Duff no less! We can’t wait for audiences to meet Sophie and her crew, and watch them come into their own and find love in modern-day New York City. And we hope nobody thinks it’s weird that Bob Saget will be playing old Hilary Duff’s voice.”

Bays and Thomas originally wrote a pilot for the comedy series alongside Emily Spivey and starring Greta Gerwig and Drew Tarver, but it was never picked up.

There are likely no hard feelings, as Gerwig went on to direct critically acclaimed hits Lady Bird and Little Women, which were both nominated for Academy Awards — Little Women winning Best Costume Design.

Duff will now star as Sophie, a mother telling her son the story of how she met his father — which takes the viewers back to the year 2021, a time when Sophie was still figuring life out with her group of friends in New York City. Sound familiar?

“Kids, I’m going to tell you an incredible story: It’s the story of how two writers got lucky enough to make their dream TV show for nine seasons and now get to pass the torch to an inspired new creative team with their own incredible story to tell, the story of How I Met Your Father,” Bays and Thomas said in a joint statement. “We are honored by their passion and vision, and look forward to helping them tell a legendary new story. (Thanks to all the HIMYM fans out there who waited for it.)”

The duo also teased the news on Twitter earlier this week:

Duff additionally released a statement, revealing that she is a huge fan of How I Met Your Mother and has been “fangirling” over the chance to join the series.

“I’ve been incredibly lucky in my career to play some wonderful characters and I’m looking forward to taking on the role of Sophie,” said Duff. “As a huge fan of How I Met Your Mother, I’m honored and even a little nervous that Carter and Craig would trust me with the sequel of their baby. Isaac and Elizabeth are brilliant, and I can’t wait to work alongside them and all of their genius. Just fangirling over here getting to join the Hulu Originals and 20th families. I realize these are big shoes to fill and I’m excited to slip my 6 ½’s in there.”

How I Met Your Mother ran for nine seasons from 2005-2014 and starred Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, and Alyson Hannigan while Cristin Milioti later played the mystery mother.

Duff currently stars in Darren Star comedy Younger alongside Sutton Foster. The show’s seventh and final season is now streaming on Paramount+ with new episodes released on Thursdays.

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