Neil Patrick Harris on Barney Stinson, Twitter, and possibly hosting the Academy Awards one day

Neil Patrick Harris was at The Grove in LA this week to unveil a new M&M character named Mrs. Brown.

Parade.com caught up with the multi-talented star and fired some questions at him. Here are some of them:

On his role as Barney Stinson on How I Met Your Mother, for which he received the People’s Choice Award for “Favorite TV Comedy Actor.”
“He’s a rakish, drunken, hilarious crazy man. As an actor, you most often play relatively average parts, so to get to play extreme versions of anything, those are the most exciting parts. It’s been a great blessing. He is this sort of crazy alpha male version of myself. He’s a real hoot to play.”

The cast of How I Met Your Mother also won at the People’s Choice for “Favorite Network TV Comedy.”
“I like the family and the camaraderie we have. It’s a machine that’s running really well and thankfully everyone who is there has been with us a long time. The cast hasn’t changed, the crew hasn’t changed, and everyone works very hard. Everyone’s really positive and cares about each other, and that’s relatively unique in Hollywood. I appreciate that more than anything.”

After his success in hosting the Tony Awards, what does he think about the prospect of hosting the Oscars one day?
“It’s nothing you audition for. That’s a call that would randomly come some day. It would certainly be a fun thing on the bucket list if it were to happen, but there’s no real angling towards it. It either comes your way or it doesn’t.”

On reaching his fans through Twitter.
“Everyone’s been so nice, whether they know me as Dr. Horrible or Barney Stinson or Doogie Howser. People have been very kind and respectful of the fact that I have a life that’s outside of the business, but also relatively interested in what goes on in that life. I think Twitter helps. Twitter is fun because it allows a kind of intimacy with people who want to follow you. You can toss them a funny joke or picture or story that’s unique to you and doesn’t come through the publicists and the studios. It’s just straight out of my brain, into my finger, onto my phone, and off to Twitter! It’s gotten me in trouble a couple of times, but I suppose so have other things!”