If there’s any content-related news that TV viewers dread hearing, it’s cancellation news. Unfortunately for them, we’ve reached a point in the year where such reports surface somewhat frequently. Some may believe Netflix to be the streamer that’s most commonly axing programs but, as of late, Disney-owned streamers have been cutting series. Around this time last week, it was confirmed that Disney+ had cancelled two-season show Doogie Kameāloha, M.D. Now, its sister service, Hulu, has followed suit by pulling the plug on an original series with the same length – How I Met Your Father.
The multi-camera sitcom’s demise was ultimately confirmed by TVLine. How I Met Your Father, which starred Hilary Duff in the lead role, just finished up its 20-episode second season earlier this summer. Hulu has not publicly commented on its decision to cancel the show, as of this writing. With that, it’s unclear just why the comedy has been canned after running for 30 episodes. Considering that viewership numbers haven’t traditionally been shared by the streaming service, one also can’t truly speculate whether that factored into the matter.
How I Met Your Father served as a sequel series to the hit show How I Met Your Mother, which ran for nine seasons on CBS. The off-shoot was a long-gestating production and entered development in earnest following the creation of the spinoff pilot, How I Met Your Dad, which starred Barbie director Greta Gerwig. It was in spring 2021 that the series was officially greenlit with Hilary Duff attached to play the lead. The comedy ultimately premiered on Hulu in early 2022 and was met with mostly negative reviews at the time. It did, however, score two Primetime Creative Arts Emmys for cinematography and editing last year and is currently nominated for three more of the gold statues.
Set in the same universe as How I Met Your Mother, the show focuses on Sophie Tompkins, who – in the present day – is a single woman living in Manhattan alongside her friend group. The entire series is framed as a long story that an older Sophie is telling her son in the year 2050, to explain how she met his father in 2022. Along the way, the show also featured cameos from HIMYM alums. For instance, Cobie Smulders and Neil Patrick Harris appeared as Robin Scherbatsky and Barney Stinson, respectively. The producers brought in surprise characters sparingly and, during the series’ run, fans expressed interest in seeing other franchise alums like Josh Radnor and Jason Segel.
HIMYF’s cancellation comes on the heels of the news that Hulu axed The Great after three seasons. This news also arrives months after the streamer and Disney+ cut content, resulting in a bloodbath for both services. Considering just how everything has panned out as of late, one has to wonder if the Hilary Duff-led comedy is not at risk of being removed entirely for cost-cutting purposes.
There are currently a number of other comedies on How I Met Your Father’s streaming home that are currently awaiting renewals. Among them are Ramy, This Fool, Imprisoned and Koala Man. Time will tell whether those series are picked up for new episodes, and the same goes for series that are still awaiting word over at Disney+. At present though, what fans will have to reckon with is the fact that the How I Met universe seems to be over, for now.
You can still stream How I Met Your Father in its entirety using a Hulu subscription, and check out other offerings that are on the 2023 TV schedule.