It’s official: How I Met Your Father is returning for a second season and it will have twice as many episodes as the first, much to the delight of fans.
Hilary Duff leads the cast of the sitcom, playing hopeless romantic Sophie who is looking to find the love of her life amid the chaos of 2022’s New York City.
The show is a sequel to mid-noughties hit How I Met Your Mother, sharing the same friendly group dynamic as well as a handful of surprise cameos.
As the series makes its long-awaited debut on Disney Plus in the UK, we have the lowdown on the confirmed How I Met Your Father season 2 – but be warned, there are spoilers ahead.
How I Met Your Father season 2 release date rumours
![""]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/12/How-I-met-Your-father--332f7f7-e1643040952518.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"\"")
Hulu are yet to confirm a release date for How I Met Your Father season 2, but we can make an educated guess based on the timeline of the initial episodes.
The show had its US premiere in January 2022, where it aired weekly on streaming service Hulu, but its UK release was held until May so it could launch as a complete binge-worthy box set.
The premiere date might depend on which release method showrunners Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger choose for their 20-episode sophomore run, with an alternative option being to split the next season into two parts.
“We’re still going back and forth,” Aptaker told TVLine. “We’re finishing out this season, then taking a beat to talk about what the best path forward is.”
He added that Hulu are keen to have more episodes “sooner than later” and that “a show like this moves really fast”, with an aim to commence production on season 2 this summer.
All this considered, it’s quite possible we could see more How I Met Your Father before the end of the year, particularly given the sitcom writer urge to pen a Christmas-themed episode.
Failing that, the show is likely to be back on screens no later than January 2023.
How I Met Your Father season 2 cast
![""]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2021/12/HIMYF-5ba16ee.jpg?quality=90&crop=121px%2C0px%2C1013px%2C675px&resize=620%2C413" "\"\"")
Hilary Duff will definitely be back to front the second season of How I Met Your Father, with the former Lizzie McGuire star also serving as executive producer on this show.
She’ll be joined by the quirky group of friends introduced in the first ten episodes, including best friend Valentina (Francia Raisa), aspiring musician Jessie (Chris Lowell) and his adoptive sister Ellen (Tien Tran).
There’s also bar owner Sid (Suraj Sharma), who tied the knot with longtime partner Hannah (Ashley Reyes) in the series finale, and also threw disowned aristocrat Charlie (Tom Ainsley) a lifeline by hiring him as a bartender.
We’re also likely to see the full return of Daniel Augustin’s Ian, who was absent for much of the first season, but made a romantic surprise appearance in the finale.
Former Sex in the City star Kim Cattrall will also be back, playing an older version of Sophie in the show’s flash-forward segments, where she is regaling her son with the story of how she met his father.
Will there be more How I Met Your Mother cameos?
![""]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2022/05/cobie-smulders-how-i-met-your-mother-be2bf41.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"\"")
How I Met Your Mother fans were shocked to see Cobie Smulders return as Robin in the season finale of this sequel, where she gives some life advice to Duff’s new lead protagonist.
She was not the only familiar face from the original series, with other cameos including Kyle MacLachlan’s The Captain and his wife Becky, as played by Laura Bell Bundy.
Joe Nieves also made a brief appearance as bartender Carl, who still works at MacLaren’s Pub, a popular hangout spot among the How I Met Your Mother friendship group.
So could there be more cameos to come in season 2? Here’s what co-showrunner Elizabeth Berger told RadioTimes.com.
“We exist in the same universe as the original and that means that, whether it’s another set, whether it’s a person from the original, these kinds of things can populate our world.”
She added: “And we think that we fulfil that notion in a really satisfying way, even in this season, and hope to continue to do so in future seasons.”
That said, following Robin’s reveal in the season one finale, director Pam Fryman described the Smulders cameo as “a gift instead of a promise” (via TVLine), so don’t necessarily place all your hopes on seeing more from the original cast.
Is there a How I Met Your Father season 2 trailer?
Not just yet. But with production likely to begin this summer, it might not be long before we get our first look at the next chapter.
How I Met Your Father is available to stream on Disney Plus. Check out more of our Comedy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now – subscribe now and get the next 12 issues for only £1. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the Radio Times podcast with Jane Garvey.