Last year during the HIMYM summer hiatus, Neil shot The Best & The Brightest, a new comedy also starring Amy Sedaris, Bonnie Somerville, Peter Serafinowicz, John Hodgman, Jenna Stern, Kate Mulgrew, Steve Park, Kelly Coffield, Bridget Regan, Nina Lisandrello, and Chris McDonald. The movie’s writer/director Joshua Shelov was awesome enough to send us over an exclusive photo from the movie to share with you all.

Bonnie Somerville plays Neil’s wife Sam, and two of them play a couple navigating the treacherous waters of elite New York City private kindergartens. Josh has only the highest compliments for Neil, and we can’t wait to find out more about the movie! Be sure to follow them on Twitter @BestNBrightest to keep up to date with all the latest news and behind the scenes gossip!

Posted by: Rach at 12:40 am | · Filed under: Movies | Comment
Tags: Gallery Update, The Best and the Brightest |

Now for the news roundup I promised:

• Michael Ausiello from Entertainment Weekly reports that CBS has signed off on Neil’s guest appearance on FOX’s Glee. The only remaining hurdle is making sure that it can fit into Neil’s already hectic schedule!
• Popeater is reporting that Neil is being lined up to star in a new revival of “Barnum” on Broadway. Neil has talked many times about his interest in that role, though he has stated that he’s still too young for it. This new report reveals that Neil is the producer’s “only choice” – what isn’t clear, however, is the timescale in question. It’s likely this won’t be taking place imminently, but simply that whenever it does, Neil is a shoe-in for the part.
• The Superbowl is on CBS this year (this coming Sunday, Feb 7) and there’s some HIMYM related cross-promotion happening on Twitter. Craig and Carter go into a little more detail in this interview from the time of the 100th episode promotion.
• The Best and the Brightest, which Neil shot this summer, is now on Twitter and you can become a fan on Facebook. They’re calling it a “social media explosion” and they’ve been posting pictures and holding contests so far, so check them out!

Finally, there’s a lot of talk in the media that Neil should replace Simon Cowell as a full time judge on American Idol when he leaves at the end of this season. His guest stint was loved by the critics, but what do you think about him taking on the role full time? I think that without Simon, and knowing that Neil is good friends with both Ellen and Kara, there might not be enough differences of opinion to keep it interesting. And that’s before you even think about working it into his schedule, especially now with the news that HIMYM has been renewed for season 6.

Posted by: Rach at 7:58 am | · Filed under: HIMYM, TV Appearances | Comment
Tags: Barnum, Broadway, CBS, Rumours, Superbowl, The Best and the Brightest, TV Appearances, TV: American Idol, TV: Glee, TV: HIMYM, Twitter |

Shooting starts this coming Thursday on “The Best and the Brightest“, a “farce about two Delawareans trying to get their daughter into an elite Manhattan private kindergarten”. The movie will focus on their realization of the lengths they have to go to in order to secure a place for their five year old child. Neil will play Jeff, one half of the couple, and Bonnie Somerville will play his wife Samantha. The movie is being shot in Philadelphia, and Josh Shelov will direct the screenplay he co-wrote with Michael Jaeger. Diatribe Entertainment will produce the R rated comedy, and there’s a further synopsis on their “in development” page here.

Posted by: Rach at 12:59 pm | · Filed under: Movies | 2 Comments
Tags: Movies, The Best and the Brightest |