NPH Stars In Netflix's 'Lemony Snicket' Series

It is time to officially get excited, Neil Patrick Harris fans, because all of this back and forth about whether or not Harris will star in Netflix’s Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events has officially come to the end. It was announced on Monday that Neil Patrick Harris will star in Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events in the iconic role of Olaf, according to Deadline. And thank goodness for this news, because rumors have been circulating since January that he may or may not take the part. So now that the role is officially his, what I of course want to know is when will A Series of Unfortunate Events premiere?

You know how it is with those Netflix shows: Sometimes word gets around that they’re happening and then there is no release date in sight. (I’m talking to you, Gilmore Girls revival!) But take heart, Snicket fans, because there may be some hope that this show will be fast-tracked and released within the year.

The series, which will be based on the books by the same name, recounts the various tales of the orphaned Baudelaire children — Violet, Klaus, and Sunny — as they try to uncover the secrets of their parents’ deaths. The entire series is narrated by Lemony Snicket and often involves a number of hijinx at the hands of Count Olaf, who, in the 2004 movie version of the book series, was played by Jim Carrey. In addition to Harris' recent casting news, Patrick Warburton has been confirmed to star as Lemony Snicket, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Considering the success of the book series and the 2004 film, the new Netflix series has been hotly anticipated. And now that the casting news is official, we can all breathe deeply, because the show is likely just around the corner. While no release date has been officially announced, on the series’ IMDB page, the release date for the first episode is listed as August 2016, so take that for what you will. And as much as that might seem like a fantasy, Deadline reported in January that filming on the series would begin in March 2016.

But considering that casting has just been confirmed and that Harris is set to begin production on Downsizing this spring, filming for the parts involving him might just have to wait until he is done with his other projects.

I’m definitely crossing my fingers for a 2016 release, but I’m not holding my breath. There’s a pretty good chance that the show’s premiere will be slightly altered by Harris’ filming schedule — that's showbiz, folks.

Image: Giphy