Big Bang Theory Star Recounts Failed How I Met Your Mother Audition

When it comes to The Big Bang Theory, it is difficult to imagine anyone else playing Sheldon Cooper than Jim Parsons. The actor has become a household name thanks to the insanely popular comedy, and Parsons has been with the nerd-focused show since day one. However, it seems like the actor could have been persuaded to drop The Big Bang Theory if another audition of his had gone well. In an alternate universe, Parson might have been the actor to play Barney on How I Met Your Mother. And, now, the actor is sharing new details about his failed audition.

Over on The Late Late Show with James Corden, the actor appeared and answered some questions in a backstage video. On Youtube, the show posted a video of Parsons reacting to various online fan theories about The Big Bang Theory, and one of them questioned whether Sheldon was actually Barney from an opposite dimension. So, of course, the proposition got Parson thinking about his less-than-stellar audition from years ago.

"The funny thing about this is I auditioned to play Barney, and felt I was very wrong for it, and almost ran screaming from the room after I auditioned," Parsons admitted. "Like, 'Well I did that and I don't know why.' They actually made me come back in as if they were interested. Not interested enough because the right person got that part, Neil Patrick Harris."

Still, it seems like Parsons found the fan theory intriguing enough to consider futher. "I find this fascinating that I have this loose-ish connection to this part, and you've got this theory -- that's not true -- but you've got that theory at all. Maybe I'm giving that vibe off. Maybe underneath this character I've been playing is a raging horndog and a womanizer."

So far, it looks like Parsons decision to take on The Big Bang Theory has worked in his favor. The actor has received numerous awards and nominations for playing Sheldon, and the series will continue on with an upcoming spin-off. The new show will tell the story of Sheldon's teenage years, and Parsons has already gushed over the project.

"[The writers] have done, from the beginning, such a good job of building such a history and a layered nature to all these characters," he told Entertainment Tonight.

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"It just seems like a really wasted opportunity if you don't decide to explore the origin story with that. I mean, they've layered so many things in there over the past decade that is already there to be drawn from. I'm really excited about it. I think it will be very different than Big Bang, but in a good way," he added.