Josh Radnor

Chances are you're most familiar with Josh Radnor from his role as Ted Mosby (architect extraordinaire) on How I Met Your Mother. The actor guest starred in a slew of TV series before landing the role, but even before his spots on Law & Order and Six Feet Under, Radnor appeared in a little satire called Not Another Teen Movie. His character, "Tour Guide," ushers students around campus and has a penchant for pointing out clichés. Who knew 11 years later he'd be returning to school to star in and direct Liberal Arts?

Watch him school some freshmen after the jump.

Many actors would be content with a starring role on one of TV's most popular sitcoms, but not How I Met Your Mother's Josh Radnor. After the release of his directorial debut, HappyThankYouMorePlease, Radnor has another project he wrote, directed, and stars in. In Liberal Arts, he plays a disenchanted college admissions counselor who travels back to his alma mater and encounters a lively and charming sophomore (Elizabeth Olsen) who inspires him. In turn, he responds by telling her, in so many words, that her liberal arts degree will prepare her for a life of disappointment.

As impressive as it is that Radnor is blazing a trail for himself in the film industry, this trailer feels like something we've seen before (Woody Allen has done the whole semidepressive leading male romancing a young woman story to death). If anything, I'm excited to see the excellent Richard Jenkins and Allison Janney as Radnor's former professors. Check out Liberal Arts when it opens Sept. 14, and take a peek at the trailer when you read more.

Josh Radnor's character on How I Met Your Mother may not have his main love interest yet, but in the movies, Radnor is lining them up. After the recent release of his directorial debut, HappyThankYouMorePlease, which Radnor wrote and starred in, too, he has just sealed a deal for his next project, a film called Liberal Arts, which he also wrote and will direct and appear in. The movie is about a 35-year-old professor (Radnor) who falls for one of his 19-year-old students, who will be played by Elizabeth Olsen (sister of Mary-Kate and Ashley). The movie will shoot while How I Met Your Mother is on hiatus.

HappyThankYouMorePlease is the directorial debut of How I Met Your Mother's Josh Radnor, who wrote and stars in the indie romance. He plays Sam, a writer living in New York City in his late 20s. En route to a meeting, he happens upon a young boy named Rasheen, who's been left alone on the subway. Not sure what to do, Sam becomes Rasheen's reluctant guardian for the next few days. As ill-equipped Sam deals with his new charge and finds a possible love interest (Kate Mara), we meet his friends: unlucky-in-love Annie (Malin Akerman) and couple Mary Catherine and Charlie (Zoe Kazan and Pablo Schreiber).

Radnor's first feature is an impressive effort; the individual stories are only moderately compelling, but the slice of life he portrays makes for a disarming and completely enjoyable experience. To find out why else I liked about HappyThankYouMorePlease, just read more

This evening's Independent Spirit Awards in LA gave Hollywood another chance to celebrate the best actors and films of the year. Many stars looked amazing on the red carpet, including lovely ladies like Nicole Kidman, Natalie Portman, and Jennifer Lawrence. It's the last show before the Oscars — make sure to print out Buzz's ballot to pick your winners for tomorrow — but not all of the usual suspects of this year's award season went home winners today. Pregnant and glowing Natalie did seize the best actress statue for her ballerina role in Black Swan, but unlike at many other shows, it was James Franco who was crowned best actor for 127 Hours. He headed into the press room after accepting his honor, and revealed a few hints about what's in store at the Academy Awards.

This show was full of A-list presenters, like a side-swept Nicole Kidman and Jeremy Renner. Twilight's Anna Kendrick was alongside How I Met Your Mother star and director of the upcoming Happythankyoumoreplease Josh Radnor. A Chanel-clad Naomi Watts, who attended with Liev Schreiber, took the stage with Ewan McGregor. James made the rounds to chat with Natalie's director, Darren Aronofsky, and Diego Luna. There were plenty of adorable couples in attendance, too, as Nicole spent time with her husband, Keith Urban, and Jon Hamm stayed close to his girlfriend, Jennifer Westfeldt. Nominee Annette Bening was next to Warren Beatty, while pals Jeremy and Mark Ruffalo caught up. Check out the full list of winners from the Independent Spirits and make sure to stay tuned to PopSugar for tomorrow's live broadcast from the Oscars red carpet on Sunday. Watch here on PopSugar and follow us on Twitter for breaking news and photos!

To see more from the show just read more