‘How I Met Your Mother’: Did Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel Ever Date in Real Life?

How I Met Your Mother was one of the most iconic TV series of the early 2000s. The show’s unique storytelling perspective and hysterically relatable characters made the CBS comedy a hit. Ted Mosby (played by Josh Radnor) was the focus of How I Met Your Mother, but his two besties, Lily and Marshall, were always beside him. Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel portrayed the quirky yet beloved couple, and fans still wonder if the two actors ever got together behind the scenes.

Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel played a quirky couple on ‘How I Met Your Mother’

For nine seasons, viewers eagerly tuned in to see what Ted would reveal about the mysterious woman with whom he would eventually fall in love and start a family. On How I Met Your Mother, through the ups and downs, Marshall, Lily, Barney, and Robin were always there for Ted — typically at their favorite bar, MacLaren’s. 

Over the show’s 208 episodes, fans saw Marshall and Lily fight for each another, marry, and eventually have children. Hannigan and Segel’s on-sreen chemistry was undeniable and seemed to translate to the stars’ lives off-camera. But did Hannigan and Segel ever date in real life?

Did ‘How I Met Your Mother’ stars Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel ever date in real life? 

It is easy to see why many people might have jumped to the conclusion, but Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel’s chemistry stemmed from a friendly place. The actors’ ability to get viewers to buy into the characters’ relationship is a testimony to Segel and Hannigan’s talent and special connection. 

Working side-by-side for nine seasons, the two became good friends. When the close-knit cast appeared on The Talk to discuss the end of How I Met Your Mother, Segel explained, “Aly taught me a lot about how to be a man, I gotta say. I was 25 when I took [on] the show, and I think we’ve all been through a lot personally. Aly and I have a lot of scenes together, and we spend a lot of time together, and she’s always been there to listen to me and to give me advice. [She] saw me through hard times and good times” (via HuffPost).

The Forgetting Sarah Marshall star concluded, “I learned a lot from being around Alyson about the kind of person I wanted to be.”

Hannigan was too emotional to add much, but their sweet bond and relationship — on and off screen — were evident.

Regardless of Hannigan and Segel’s dynamic, Hannigan has been married to Alexis Denisof, her Buffy the Vampire Slayer co-star, since 2003. As for Segel, when How I Met Your Mother debuted, he was in a relationship with Linda Cardellini. The actor — best known for her performances in Scooby-Doo, Brokeback Mountain, Bloodline, and Dead to Me — and Segel called it quits in 2007.

As How I Met Your Mother prepared to end, Segel started a new romance. In 2013, he began dating photographer Alexis Mixter. 

However, in April 2021, Mixter took to Instagram to share a heartfelt post announcing she and Segel had ended their romance but remained friends. Segel’s fans are hopeful for what the future holds for the actor.

Hannigan revealed why kissing Segel on set was unpleasant

Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel didn’t date in real life, but they did a fantastic job convincing audiences they were the real deal. To make matters even more awe-inspiring, Hannigan has since revealed she hated kissing Segel. 

But his smooching skills weren’t the problem. It was his smoking habit. Hannigan even compared the experience to “kissing an ashtray.” Although viewers enjoyed watching them play a happy couple on How I Met Your Mother, Hannigan and Segel ultimately seemed like an unlikely match from the start.