Barney Stinson was initially envisioned as what kind of character?

Barney Stinson was initially envisioned as a John Belushi-type character.

Creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas originally imagined Barney as a large, energetic comic presence modeled on the kind of roles associated with John Belushi. That early concept was different from the sharply dressed, manipulative womanizer eventually played by Neil Patrick Harris.

Harris was not the obvious choice on paper. He assumed casting director Megan Branman invited him to audition partly because they were friends and thought he had little chance of winning the role. His physical audition, including an improvised dive roll during a laser-tag scene, impressed CBS executives.

Harris's performance reshaped Barney into one of the show's defining characters, complete with catchphrases such as “Suit up!” and elaborate schemes collected in The Playbook. Jim Parsons also auditioned for the part before Harris was cast, a detail that often causes confusion about the character's original development.