Nobody puts Patrick Harris in a corner
By Andrew Plotkin

Neil Patrick Harris, one of the stars of the new movie Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, never would have expected that his Hollywood renaissance would have resulted from playing a cocaine-snorting, lap dance-loving, degenerate named…Neil Patrick Harris. But that’s exactly what happened in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. Following his unforgettable turn as “Neil Patrick Harris” (note the quotation marks, because the real-life NPH won’t hesitate to point out the ways that he differs from his punctuated counterpart), the actor previously best known for playing a medicinal prodigy was cast on the sitcom How I Met Your Mother, currently in its third season. On that series, he plays Barney Stinson, a suited up, catch-phrase spewing, only slightly less vulgar adaptation of his role from H&K. NPH even garnered an Emmy nomination last year for the role.

When first approached by Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg, co-writers of the first film and co-writers/co-directors of the sequel, Harris made sure he brought a security blanket before hopping into bed with the filmmakers. “I made sure, legally, that anything that had to do with me in the first film, went through me before any changes were made. And I didn’t really need to do that,” he said. “Jon and Hayden were so stoked that I was on board that they didn’t even think of trying to sell me down the river.” However, the actor did admit during a recent NYC promotional stop for H&K2 that “they went so extreme with the first [film] and I just didn’t ever know how far they would end up taking it.” For the record, how far they took it was very far.

NPH plays a much more pivotal role in this outing, giving our high heroes a major assist along their journey. But don’t think that he doesn’t have his dirty fun, too. (Look out for the beautiful imagery created when he wistfully likens his first love’s nipples to one of America’s favorite candies. And he eats enough shrooms to shame that kid from the opening scene of Super Troopers.)
Few actors can claim to have portrayed themselves or variations of themselves on-screen, a fact which is not lost on Harris, who often has to watch himself while answering questions about what is perhaps his most infamous role. “It’s a little uniquely weird being recognized for playing yourself,” he explained. “You can’t really own it. You can’t say ‘oh I did so well playing myself’. You sound like a braggart.” Performing such a role did have one major benefit, though. “I mean, I feel like I am an authority on myself, so I didn’t need to do so much research,” he said.

Further commenting on the awkwardness of playing a caricature of himself, the actor said he has a tendency to “steer everything towards magic because that’s my hobby.” Elaborating on that, he said, “Back in the 1910s and ‘20s, magicians would project an image of themselves, separate from being married and having kids, so that you only could see them for what they were showing you, so I think it’s interesting that this ‘Neil Patrick Harris’ is sort of my personal life, but people know that it’s not my personal life, but they do sort of blend together. And then there’s this private life that I have and am allowed to have, and it’s a little smoke and mirrors going on, unintentionally, but it’s a bit fun for me.”

Earlier in the week, Harris’ Kumar co-star, Christopher Meloni noted how being on a network series was different from working on an HBO show. Harris commented on starring on a network series as well, only this time the comparison was drawn between his sometimes exhausting day job and his work in the Harold & Kumar films. “In a sitcom, you’re going for more laughs per minute, and you’re trying to create a new energy level where people can sit back and laugh the situation, but it requires this sort of caffeinated, hyper sense of comedy.”

He continued, “This is more stoner comedy, so you try to do things that, upon a 2nd or 3rd viewing, can be seen in a different way, so it’s a little more subtle, even though it’s disturbingly broad.”
To find what kind of whore “NPH” enjoys, go see Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. To find out more about the career of Neil Patrick Harris, well, just Google him. You expect me to do everything for you?