The original Friends replacement is surging on streaming at exactly the right time.
Many shows have tried to capture the magic of Friends, both right after it became popular in 1994 and after it ended in 2004. How I Met Your Mother, which started on CBS in September 2005, was one of the first series created to fill the gap left by Friends’ finale.
The sitcom, starring Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, and Alyson Hannigan, was created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas. It quickly became known for its story of Ted Mosby (played by Radnor) looking back on the events that led him to meet his future wife and the mother of his children.
The popular sitcom How I Met Your Mother originally ran for nine seasons with a total of 208 episodes. Now, it’s found a new audience thanks to streaming and DVD sales, and is currently very popular on Disney+ around the world. It’s currently a Top 10 show in Greece, Portugal, Malta, and Singapore, even reaching the #5 spot in both Greece and Malta.
The comedy series is gaining attention again, which is perfect timing for fans of the cast of How I Met Your Mother. Jason Segel, who played Marshall, is currently the lead in the Apple TV+ comedy Shrinking, which recently started its third season. Alyson Hannigan, known for her roles as Willow in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Lily in How I Met Your Mother, is now starring with Kevin James in the new romantic comedy Solo Mio.
Cobie Smulders, best known for playing Robin Scherbatsky, has continued to work steadily. She recently appeared in the popular Netflix series The Lincoln Lawyer and teamed up with Jason Segel again on Shrinking. She also made a quick cameo as Robin in the Hulu series How I Met Your Father.
Fans of How I Met Your Mother insist it’s much more than just a copy of Friends, even though the shows started with similar ideas and aired around the same time. Friends itself followed in the footsteps of Living Single, which premiered in 1993. What connects all three shows—beyond their focus on young adulthood and relationships—is the strong impact of their ensemble casts, which continue to define their lasting appeal.
Even though the ending of How I Met Your Mother was controversial, the original show remains popular. Attempts to create spinoffs – one starring Greta Gerwig in 2013 and another on Hulu lasting two seasons – both failed to capture the same magic, proving the original’s appeal is unique.
Read More
- Lacari banned on Twitch & Kick after accidentally showing explicit files on notepad
- Adolescence’s Co-Creator Is Making A Lord Of The Flies Show. Everything We Know About The Book-To-Screen Adaptation
- The Batman 2 Villain Update Backs Up DC Movie Rumor
- YouTuber streams himself 24/7 in total isolation for an entire year
- Gold Rate Forecast
- Landman Recap: The Dream That Keeps Coming True
- KPop Demon Hunters Just Broke Another Big Record, But I Think Taylor Swift Could Stop It From Beating The Next One
- EA announces paid 2026 expansion for F1 25 ahead of full game overhaul in 2027
- Jane Austen Would Say: Bitcoin’s Turmoil-A Tale of HODL and Hysteria
- James Cameron Gets Honest About Avatar’s Uncertain Future
2026-02-05 20:28