Hilary Duff opens up about her upcoming series 'How I Met Your Father'

Actor Hilary Duff, widely known for playing the lead role in the TV series 'Lizzie McGuire', opened up about 'How I Met Your Father', which is an upcoming spin-off sequel series of the insanely popular show 'How I Met Your Mother'.

Speaking for the first time since 'How I Met Your Father' was announced, Duff told Variety about her excitement to star in the series, which will stream on Hulu.

"After spending so much time on a show with people you love, it's always hard to permanently say goodbye," Duff said about 'Younger' wrapping up its seventh-and-final season.

"I'm not ready for it to end," she said, but noted she is ready for "a job that shoots in L.A!"

Duff was interested in starring in the 'HIMYM' sequel, partly because of the female spin the series will take. However, it remains unclear whether the new show will tie into the original sitcom.

'HIMYF' is set in the near future where Sophie (Duff) is telling her son the story of how she met his father: a story that catapults back to the year 2021 where Sophie and her close-knit group of friends are in the midst of figuring out who they are, what they want out of life and how to fall in love, in the age of dating apps and limitless options.

"I'm a fan of Isaac and Elizabeth and was absolutely on board after reading the script for 'HIMYF,'" Duff said of Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger, the 'This Is Us' showrunners who will serve as writers and executive producers on 'How I Met Your Father'.

"I knew I had to be the one to bring Sophie to life and share the female POV to this legendary show," Duff added, with a nod to the catchphrase from the original series.

Duff shared that she was a fan of the original show. "I'm such a fan of the original cast. They were absolutely seamless and brought me many laughs," Duff said.

With 'HIMYF' given the greenlight, an insider said that it's unlikely Duff would be able to move forward with the 'Younger' spinoff, which has been in development and would focus around her character from the Paramount Plus series, 'Kelsey Peters'.

While the potential spinoff was in the very early stages, the project was described to Variety as a female "Entourage" that would be set in L.A., and occupy a completely different world than that of 'Younger'.

Meanwhile, the final season of 'Younger' is currently airing with new episodes dropping each Thursday on Paramount Plus. Duff said that the season is her favourite yet.

"I think the writers wrapped everything up nicely," she said, adding that she is pleased with how her character's journey ends.

"I love that Kelsey chooses herself, ditches the guys who aren't good for her and continues on a journey that forces her to take risks," Duff said, teasing, "The ending especially really got me."

Duff, who gave birth to a baby girl less than one month ago, was pregnant while filming the seventh season of 'Younger', during a global pandemic, nonetheless.

"I was a little worried with the challenges of COVID and my pregnancy, but everything came together," Duff said.

"I'm all for mask-wearing, but huffing-and-puffing on set in a mask at eight months pregnant was a challenge," she quipped.

She added, "Fitting into clothes that aren't made for a pregnant body was not always the most comfortable or fun. And just being freaked out to being exposed to COVID -- there are always risks, even though our set was super cautious. I had to quarantine a bunch of times and that was really hard."

New episodes of 'Younger' stream Thursdays on Paramount Plus, and will later be available on TV Land. A premiere date for 'How I Met Your Father' has not been announced, at this time.

Duff will produce in addition to starring in 'HIMYF', with Adam Londy serving as co-executive producer. 20th Television will produce the new series as it did with the original. Aptaker and Berger are currently under an overall deal at the studio.

'How I Met Your Mother' ran on CBS from 2005 to 2014. The pop culture phenomenon starred Josh Radnor (Ted Mosby), Cobie Smulders (Robin Scherbatsky), Neil Patrick Harris (Barney Stinson), Jason Segel (Marshall Erikson) and Alyson Hannigan (Lily Aldrin).

Bob Saget provided the voice of the narrator, an older version of Radnor's character Ted Mosby.

The series followed Radnor's character Ted Mosby, who tells his children the story of how he met their mother. In its nine-season run, 'HIMYM' earned multiple Emmy wins and Golden Globe recognition.

Months before the sitcom's series finale aired in 2014, a 'How I Met Your Dad' spinoff series was announced. Greta Gerwig was signed on to star but CBS ultimately passed on the project.

Two years later, Deadline reported that the series was being renamed to 'How I Met Your Father' and getting brand new characters. Aptaker and Berger were additionally tapped to write the show, but the project was later put on hold in 2017.

( With inputs from ANI )