Richard Jenkins, the Oscar-nominated actor from The Visitor, Let Me In and dozens of other movies you've seen in the last decade, may seem to be a pretty big name to be snagged by Josh Radnor, the How I Met Your Mother star who is now moving into directing. But Jenkins actually had a small role in Radnor's directorial debut happythankyoumoreplease and is apparently a fan of the guy, as he's signed on for a role in Radnor's next project too. According to Variety Jenkins is taking a role in Radnor's next film Liberal Arts, playing a former professor based at the Ohio college where Radnor's character returns for a visit.
The primary story line seems to be about Radnor's character, a 35-year-old now working in admissions at a different college, and Zibby, a 19-year-old student played by Elizabeth Olsen who tries to seduce the main character. John Magaro, Michael Weston and Elizabeth Reaser have also signed on for roles, with Reaser in the potentially awkward position of also playing a love interest for Radnor's character. Magaro is playing another college kid, while Weston plays another friend living back in New York City. Shooting starts in June thanks to Radnor's hiatus from How I Met Your Mother, but it's unclear if they'll actually be shooting in Ohio-- Radnor's an alum of Ohio's Kenyon College, so you can imagine he might want to fight for some local realism.
