How I Met Neil Patrick Harris

Neil Patrick Harris has become the modern day guru for picking up chicks. It's not just me, right? Everyone takes notes during How I Met Your Mother. It all started when he played himself in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. When the stoners met the celebrity, they found him to be a car thieving, stripper spanking druggie. Their second adventure again has them cross paths with NPH, this time branding hookers at a brothel and riding a unicorn.

CraveOnline: Was it fun to play yourself again?

Neil Patrick Harris: Wildly fun. I was very excited. It's like a Christmas present. I heard I was going to be in this and I got to download the script and then open it up and see what I got to do and how it played out. And I was pleased, very pleased.

CraveOnline: Did they come to you with the first one?

Neil Patrick Harris: Well, no, I heard through a friend that the movie was green lit and being made and that I was in it and did I know about it. I didn't. So I quickly gave my attorney a call to find out if that was legitimate and got the script. Actually, my friend didn't quite get the joke so he thought I would be offended and bothered by it. I thought it was hilarious. So did my manager.

CraveOnline: Was another actor going to play your part if you didn't agree?

Neil Patrick Harris: No, they probably would have rewritten it for someone else. 

CraveOnline: So they did specifically write it for you?

Neil Patrick Harris: Yeah. They were fans I guess. It was very weird. 

CraveOnline: Are you surprised NPH has become this cult following?

Neil Patrick Harris: I don't know. I don't know what to make of it. I really don't know what to make of it. You don't want to be built up too high or else then everyone's going to get annoyed by you and want to tear you down, so it's flattering to a point and then you wonder if you're the butt of the joke or part of the joke. So I'm glad it's me. I guess it's nice that people know my name now. 

CraveOnline: Have you had anyone offer you drugs?

Neil Patrick Harris: No, but I do get a little more respect. I got laughed at a lot when I was younger. I felt a little bit like a carnival animal because a lot of people go, "Oh you're that guy from that show." Now it's like, "Yo, NPH!" [does respect sign].

CraveOnline: How long did you work on each film?

Neil Patrick Harris: The first one was like three days and the second one was five, so just in and out. 

CraveOnline: Do you have any input on what he keeps in the backpack, the items that help Harold and Kumar later?

Neil Patrick Harris: None. Apparently, they have a story. There is a backstory for that. I don't know what it is but they said, "Oh no, we have a whole thing." Okay. I love that, that they've created this fantasy world in which I exist. They know exactly how I exist in their world, so regardless of how I really am or how I play it, they write, they've got an idea and I'm gangbusters. Bring it on. 

CraveOnline: Did the first movie start a career resurgence for you?

Neil Patrick Harris: Maybe. I think it allowed people to see that I can take on that alpha male guy and they'll believe it. So it helped with How I Met Your Mother without question. I guess it worked enough that they wrote the sequel to this, so yeah, cool. I mean, I really like working and I like to try to keep things at a medium heat, so when things start popping too much then I don't know quite what to make of it, so we'll see. 

CraveOnline: Would you do another sequel?

Neil Patrick Harris: I would like to see a prequel. I'd like to see how he got to be the drug addled, sex craved, hooker branding derelict that he is. 

CraveOnline: Did you do any alternate scenes for the DVD?

Neil Patrick Harris: Now that I think about it, we might have filmed an alternate thing. What I didn't have a great time doing is we had to go into the looping room and record PG versions of all the curse words. When this movie airs on an airplane, the craziest on-flight movie ever, with a bottomless party. 

CraveOnline: Like "oh shucks?"

Neil Patrick Harris: Well, yeah, because instead of saying f*ck, they wanted to hear, "How about, forget about it?" Or something that sort of fit. I said, "No, let's do really blatantly bad ones so it's almost like another joke." So instead of "Shut your pie hole" or whatever, we'd say… God, I'm trying to remember a good one that we did. Motherf*cker was like "Man, you're a crazy fool." Not even trying to go anywhere near the word, because if it ever airs on TNT or TBS, I don't want people to go, "Oh, no, why'd they have to do that." I kind of want them to watch it and then get another laugh. So instead of "Sh*t bag" it's like "popcorn." 

CraveOnline: Did you think the first movie would get a cult status?

Neil Patrick Harris: They were hoping the first would be Cheech and Chong. I think they were hoping for a franchise. Then the first one just didn't open as strong as they wanted. That opening weekend is just key to every movie, so everyone shrugged. Then it came out on DVD and people kept watching it and kept talking about it. All of a sudden when it came out on DVD it was like people forgot that it didn't do so well in the theaters. Everyone assumed it was a big hit movie. Then it just had legs so I assumed that there might be a sequel. I didn't know it would be theatrically released or that I'd even want to be a part of it. Like Starship Troopers went on to have multiple sequels that went to DVD and seemed kind of odd. So I was thrilled. This was great. 

CraveOnline: Did you have any ideas for the movie the guys didn't go for?

Neil Patrick Harris: Are you kidding? After reading that script, what else am I going to pitch to them? No, they go pretty far. They go pretty far. Branding a giant titted stripper with my initials, my improv mind stops there.

CraveOnline: Was there anything they asked that you didn't want to do?

Neil Patrick Harris: Yeah, they wanted me to wear some weird mushroom induced outfit while atop the unicorn. They wanted the vision of me to be like in a vest with a weird tie-dyed feathered vest. And I said, "Come on, no. You're jumping the shark." Haven't the bloggers had enough fun with me sitting on a unicorn? Do I really need feathers and a tie-dyed vest on the thing? 

CraveOnline: What did you imagine in your head when you're supposed to be seeing the unicorn?

Neil Patrick Harris: I think it was green screen tennis balls on a stick. It was hard not to laugh at Rob [Corddry]. He's just so funny. 

CraveOnline: Was that reminiscent of any fan encounter you've actually had?

Neil Patrick Harris: It's so funny; he's so straight and nice about it. He's not that comedian that needs you to know how funny he is. He's just like always on point so he just did that every take, just that intense and that excited about Klendathu and Starship F*cking Troopers. It was hard to not laugh at him.  

CraveOnline: Were you game to do a Doogie Howser spoof on How I Met Your Mother? 

Neil Patrick Harris: Yeah, and Carter and Craig both called me before they released it. They said, 'We have a pitch for you for the tag. What do you think of it?' And I thought it was hilarious. It was time. 

CraveOnline: Do you know if we'll find out who the saboteur is soon, or like in three more years?

Neil Patrick Harris: They have a couple ideas for the saboteur but I think they're waiting to see on some casting stuff, whether that's worth mining again or whether it's nice to just leave it as sort of a secret we won't know for a while. I don't think at this point with only four episodes left of season three and an unsure question mark whether we're going to have a fourth season, if it's going to play into that final four in a big way.

CraveOnline: Is there anything in store for the finale?

Neil Patrick Harris: I'm hearing rumblings of sort of a dramatic twist at the end but they keep us pretty clear of what happens, not because they worry about us spoiling anything but they change their ideas all the time up until the very last minute. So they don't want to tell us, 'Oh, you're going to love what happens next week' and then the studio nixed it and they have to come, 'That awesome thing we told you about? You're not going to get to do it.'

CraveOnline: Why aren't you suited up today?

Neil Patrick Harris: Different movie, mate. This is Harold and Kumar time. 

CraveOnline: Who does Barney's suits? 

Neil Patrick Harris: All different people. Right now it's Paul Smith but Dolce Gabbanna for a while, Hugo Boss stuff. 

CraveOnline: Will you do more voice work or theater?

Neil Patrick Harris: Yeah, I did a voice on a video game, Saint's Row 2 it's called. The sequel to Saint's Row. The Justice League [The New Frontier] DVD just came out, so those things come along and I do them. Those are fun. I like a diversified career. If someone wants me to swing on a trapeze or something, I'd jump on that.

CraveOnline: Are you an active, playable character in the game?

Neil Patrick Harris: I don't think you play me but I think you try to destroy me. I had to record a lot of like, "Ugh. Agh. Ouch!" I think you throw things at me and try to kill me.