The creators of the upcoming How I Met Your Mother spinoff series, How I Met Your Father, have added actor Chris Lowell to the cast, per a report from Deadline. He'll co-star alongside lead actor and show producer Hilary Duff (of Lizzie McGuire and A Cinderella Story fame). Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker (This is Us) will be taking over as creators, while original HIMYM creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas will be babysitting the brand new baby show as executive producers.
Fans might already be wondering what role Lowell will play in the new ensemble cast. As of right now, he's signed up to play Jesse, a cynical, edgy Uber driver who doesn't think much of frivolous love and romance. He'll be living with a roommate named Tom. There's no word yet on who will play Tom, or how large of a role he'll have in the overall storyline.
In order to make sure this spinoff lives up to the success of its inspiration - even though it has no connection to the original show's storyline - the writers, producers, and cast will have to bring a good balance of HIMYM nostalgia mixed with their own original ideas to the table. We already know Duff is playing Sophie, the female counterpart to Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor). And it will come as a surprise to absolutely no one who's familiar with the original sitcom if her character ends up having the same Eeyore-esque attitude towards romance and dating while blindly stumbling into one relationship after another.
But what about Jesse? Which HIMYM character's shoes will he be filling? Is he being set up as the brooding counterpart to the lighthearted but equally-cynical-about-love playboy Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris)? Will he get a catchphrase as popular and widely memed as "challenge accepted", "have you met my friend Ted", or "legen..." - wait for it - "...dary"? Or will his role be a completely different beast entirely? Right now, fans can only speculate until more information about the show is released. And since there is no official release date yet, that might be a while.