Neil Patrick Harris Is Here for Your Pleasure
Neil Patrick Harris is one tireless showman.
On his new variety series, Best Time Ever, the 42-year-old entertainer sings, dances, performs stunts, competes against celebrities, and finds unique ways to surprise unsuspecting audience members each week.
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Itâs a combination of what Harris does best as a go-to awards show host, with a dash of Ellen DeGeneresâ casual candor with her audience of her daytime talk show, all mixed with the unexpected danger of being live. And heâs working hard to make sure fans are having a good time -- whether theyâre watching at home or in the studio at Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York City, where the show is taped.
Based on the British variety series, Ant & Decâs Saturday Night Takeaway, Harris' show is also not entirely what U.S. fans are used to. And Harris admits thereâs been a learning curve as viewers get to know an assortment of new segments, including Sing-along Live, End of Show Show, and Undercover.
âEach segment had to be explained initially and then we can do a little less explaining as the weeks go on,â Harris says of the first few episodes, adding that the in-studio audience has been âgetting more and more excitedâ as they become familiar with the format.
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So far, the two most popular segments have been the celebrity-filled games, Voices in Your Head and Neil Versus. In the former, Harris has recruited Britney Spears and his former How I Met Your Mother co-star, Cobie Smulders, to playfully prank unsuspecting victims. During Neil Versus, Harris has challenged his celebrity guests to a variety of games, including scaling a mid-air, X Factor-like obstacle course against a very nervous Reese Witherspoon. âI did not know that this is what we were doing,â Witherspoon shouted at the host. âYou are off the Christmas list.â
âThere was a little kickback from celebrities' representatives in the notion that they don't want to be thrown a curveball live on national television,â Harris says of the premiereâs stunt, revealing the Oscar-winning actress was hamming it up for the camera. âI will say that Reese is a friend and was a little bit more aware than we both led onto about the overall idea of what the stunt would be. We intentionally didn't throw some insane thing at her live as peer pressure. And she played it up tremendously well.â
But two (budding) stars fans shouldnât expect to see are his 4-year-old twins, Harper Grace and Gideon Scott Burtka-Harris. Harris says he doesnât want âto be a parent forcing my child to perform at 4 p.m. at a pretaped event, where they're required to do something specific if they didn't want to do it.â
While he may be pushing some celebrities out of their comfort zone, what people will never see on the show -- at least in the remaining five episodes of the first season -- is Harris having fun at someoneâs expense, especially an audience member. âI don't like the idea of someone being excited to come see this show and then be publicly embarrassed on live TV and then sent home.â
Harrisâ show is all about everyone having a good time. âI hope people that are already on board to do this show see the good nature of all of it.â
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Best Time Ever airs live on NBC at 10 p.m. before moving to 8 p.m. starting on Oct. 13. Tonight, Shaquille OâNeal will be the showâs celebrity announcer while Zachary Levi will be in the hot seat for a round of Neil Versus.
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