# What kind of career will Josh Radnor have post HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 11, 2013, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972 "2013-10-11T13:24:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/1 "2013-10-11T13:24:23Z")
This morning, while doing my hated treadmill time, I was watching HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER on demand. The on-demand commercials were all CBS house ads, including two for the show in question. I noticed that, while Radner is the ostensible lead, they never actually show his face in this ad. Jason Segal appears several times, telling (deliberately) bad jokes; Hannigan and, um, what’s-her-name appear several times time to be funny and hot; and Neil Patrick Harris is shown prominently with the show’s title, as if he is considered the face of the program. But Radner only appears once and from the back. Seemed odd, and prompted the question: What career path do you forecast for Radner–and, for that matter, his cohorts–after May 2014? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/2 "2013-10-11T13:37:44Z")
What’s-her-name? _WHAT’S-HER-NAME?_ That’s it! Sabers at dawn, sirrah! ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/3 "2013-10-11T13:39:08Z")
**NPH** will continue to dominate **Cobie Smulders** (aka What’s her Name - really?!) is in movies - maybe you saw her in The Avengers ;). If she can find the right part that showcases her humor and her 100% pure, unadulterated hotness, she could end up a movie star\* **Alyson Hannigan** has proven herself to be appealing, durable TV material - she’ll do another series or two **Jason Segel** is part of Team Apatow and has moved into producing his own movies - the Muppets didn’t do super-well, but Forgetting Sarah Marshall did well. He’ll do fine. **Radnor** - yeah, clearly the odd man out. I don’t see big things - maybe another series. Just nothing distinctive relative to the other cast members. \*seriously - my kids started watching old ep’s of HIMYM which was my first exposure to it. I could barely watch the show because she is so freakin’ly distractingly beautiful. She’s not like Jennifer Aniston - really cute, and her personality puts her over the edge into being super-attractive. Cobie Smulders is, oh, Christy Turlington, supermodel hot. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/4 "2013-10-11T13:40:53Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > What’s-her-name? _WHAT’S-HER-NAME?_ > > That’s it! Sabers at dawn, sirrah! Dude, I’m middle-aged. I’m not saying she’s not pretty. I just don’t remember her name. And you know how I feel about Google. Um, Ashley Williams? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/5 "2013-10-11T13:43:19Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Dude, I’m middle-aged. I’m not saying she’s not pretty. I just don’t remember her name. And you know how I feel about Google. > > Um, Ashley Williams? We kinda disagree: “who’s that pretty girl” is acceptable for most of the Ingenue types that show up on new TV shows. Cobie Smulders takes it to a whole 'nother level, coupled with the fact that she actually does a pretty good job as an actress. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/6 "2013-10-11T13:45:16Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > **NPH** will continue to dominate > **Cobie Smulders** (aka What’s her Name - really?!) is in movies - maybe you saw her in The Avengers ;). If she can find the right part that showcases her humor and her 100% pure, unadulterated hotness, she could end up a movie star\* > **Alyson Hannigan** has proven herself to be appealing, durable TV material - she’ll do another series or two > **Jason Segel** is part of Team Apatow and has moved into producing his own movies - the Muppets didn’t do super-well, but Forgetting Sarah Marshall did well. He’ll do fine. > > **Radnor** - yeah, clearly the odd man out. I don’t see big things - maybe another series. Just nothing distinctive relative to the other cast members. > > \*seriously - my kids started watching old ep’s of HIMYM which was my first exposure to it. I could barely watch the show because she is so freakin’ly distractingly beautiful. She’s not like Jennifer Aniston - really cute, and her personality puts her over the edge into being super-attractive. Cobie Smulders is, oh, Christy Turlington, supermodel hot. I’m sure this will cause **silenus** to remember my teachings and shoot me in the back of the head, but Ms Smulders has always struck me as being beautiful without being hot. She’s “objectively” better looking than Hannigan (who is showing her age more than the others,or perhaps is simply older), but both Aly and Lily are more evocative of carnal desire than Cobie and Robin. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/7 "2013-10-11T13:46:03Z")
How could you forget a name like Cobie Smulders? She will be quite fine in film-land. She’ll pick up roles in whatever Joss is doing, and Marvel will keep her in Cheerios for a long time. As mentioned above, Segal will continue to produce. Hannigan will be a staple of TV for decades to come. And I’m sure NPH will find some work somewhere. 😜 Radnor will become a TV director, mark my words. **Skald** , you’ll never see it coming. Cobie _defines_ “hot.” ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/8 "2013-10-11T14:06:23Z")
I was listening to an interview with Josh Radnor the other day (it’s [here](http://girlonguy.net/podcast/girl-on-guy-106-josh-radnor/), if you want to listen) and it seemed like TV wasn’t something that held an especially large amount of interest for him, and he’d rather concentrate on film. He’s directed a couple of his own independent movies, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he kept to that in the foreseeable future. I imagine the coin he’s pocketed from HIMYM will give him that freedom. He’s got a very “everyman” way about him, which makes him easy to cast in generic unmemorable roles, but then again he’s no Paul Rudd. ---
**Author:** ![Jennyrosity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@Jennyrosity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jennyrosity)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/9 "2013-10-11T14:08:28Z")
I really enjoyed his film, Liberal Arts, which he wrote and directed as well as starred in. It was an understated, unexpected pleasure from start to finish which showed his talent in a way that HIMYM never has, much as I like it. I’m hoping he does more stuff like that. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/10 "2013-10-11T15:09:16Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > How could you forget a name like Cobie Smulders? > > She will be quite fine in film-land. She’ll pick up roles in whatever Joss is doing, and Marvel will keep her in Cheerios for a long time. As mentioned above, Segal will continue to produce. Hannigan will be a staple of TV for decades to come. And I’m sure NPH will find some work somewhere. 😜 > > Radnor will become a TV director, mark my words. > > **Skald** , you’ll never see it coming. Cobie _defines_ “hot.” The important thing is that you continue to ignore Rhymer Rule #19: “Never give warnings to people you are plotting to murder.” God, it’s like nobody even reads my blog. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/11 "2013-10-11T15:46:08Z")
Blog? You have a blog? What blog? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/12 "2013-10-11T15:50:19Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I was listening to an interview with Josh Radnor the other day (it’s [here](http://girlonguy.net/podcast/girl-on-guy-106-josh-radnor/), if you want to listen) and it seemed like TV wasn’t something that held an especially large amount of interest for him, and he’d rather concentrate on film. He’s directed a couple of his own independent movies, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he kept to that in the foreseeable future. I imagine the coin he’s pocketed from HIMYM will give him that freedom. > > He’s got a very “everyman” way about him, which makes him easy to cast in generic unmemorable roles, but then again he’s no Paul Rudd. So, Josh Radnor will be the next Zach Braff? ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/13 "2013-10-11T15:52:26Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > So, Josh Radnor will be the next Zach Braff? Hehehe I was going to say “Making takes-themselves-too-seriously uppity ‘indie’ movies with Zach Braff.” ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/14 "2013-10-11T15:59:23Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > Blog? You have a blog? What blog? > > 😃 It’s gotten _alot_ better. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/15 "2013-10-11T16:01:03Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > Blog? You have a blog? What blog? > > 😃 :: puts on Evil!Skald hat :: That’s one. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/16 "2013-10-11T16:42:11Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > **Cobie Smulders** (aka What’s her Name - really?!) is in movies - maybe you saw her in The Avengers ;). If she can find the right part that showcases her humor and her 100% pure, unadulterated hotness, she could end up a movie star She’s a distractingly bad actress. Not that other actresses haven’t been able to use their looks to cover lack of talent, but I doubt Smulders will. I suspect she’ll end up with a bunch of “girlfriend of the lead who gets killed by the villain in the beginning of the movie” type roles. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/17 "2013-10-11T16:45:34Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > She’s a distractingly bad actress. Not that other actresses haven’t been able to use their looks to cover lack of talent, but I doubt Smulders will. I suspect she’ll end up with a bunch of “girlfriend of the lead who gets killed by the villain in the beginning of the movie” type roles. What have you seen her in that makes you call her a bad actress? As I wrote upthread I think she is more beautiful than sexy, but she seems at least competent as an thespian, and certainly she is an amusing comedienne. Her style on HIMYM is far from naturalistic (which is what many persons seem to mean when they call someone a bad actor), but it fits the role and show quite well. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/18 "2013-10-11T17:39:01Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > **NPH** will continue to dominate > **Alyson Hannigan** has proven herself to be appealing, durable TV material - she’ll do another series or two > **Jason Segel** is part of Team Apatow and has moved into producing his own movies - the Muppets didn’t do super-well, but Forgetting Sarah Marshall did well. He’ll do fine. > > **Radnor** - yeah, clearly the odd man out. I don’t see big things - maybe another series. Just nothing distinctive relative to the other cast members. Personally, I agree except for Radnor. I see him going the route of a prolific and well respected film character actor, or maybe a well regarded stage actor. For some reason, I don’t see him as a TV actor or a leading man. > [@WordMan](#): > > Cobie Smulders is, oh, Christy Turlington, supermodel hot. Wasn’t that pretty much her job prior to HIMYM? But I think I’d say "was’. While still awfully attractive, that unearthly beauty she had back in the early days of the show has had the gloss rubbed off in recent seasons. She looks a tad eaten up lately relative to her say… 2nd season look. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/19 "2013-10-11T17:46:47Z")
I think of Josh Radnor as the latest incarnation of [William Ragsdale](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Ragsdale), so I would expect his career to follow a similarly listless path. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2013, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972/20 "2013-10-11T17:52:17Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Personally, I agree except for Radnor. I see him going the route of a prolific and well respected film character actor, or maybe a well regarded stage actor. For some reason, I don’t see him as a TV actor or a leading man. > > Wasn’t that pretty much her job prior to HIMYM? > > But I think I’d say "was’. While still awfully attractive, that unearthly beauty she had back in the early days of the show has had the gloss rubbed off in recent seasons. She looks a tad eaten up lately relative to her say… 2nd season look. Really? I watched some Season 1 episodes recently, and I remember thinking that she looks better now, in her early 30s, than she did in her mid-twenties. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-career-will-josh-radnor-have-post-how-i-met-your-mother/670972.md?page=2)