Aw, Jason Segel. How can you not love the guy? He has a bromance with fellow lovable guys like Paul Rudd. He’s utterly adorable, in an approachable way. He introduced The Muppets to a whole new generation of kids. And now, in a move that will only up his likability ante, the 33-year-old star will be penning a series of children’s books.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Segel “has signed a three-book deal with Random House for a middle-grade series, Nightmares!” The How I Met Your Mother actor — who will co-write the saga about a group of neighborhood friends who try and fight fear with YA author Kirsten Miller (Kiki Strike and The Eternal Ones) — said in a statement, “Ultimately, it’s a story about learning that we can accomplish anything, as long as we are brave enough to try.” Awww.
While Segel may not appear as a big, hulking hero in action movies (he’s got more of a teddy bear physique anyway), that doesn’t mean he hasn’t had some moments of bravery on screen (and off, for that matter, whether it’s bravely scooting away from real-life heartbreak or walking away from a bona fide box office hit franchise) that he’ll be able to tap into for the Nightmares! series. Here are some ways Segel and some of his other beloved characters have defeated fear before.
Going Full Frontal in Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Is there anything more terrifying than the idea of getting completely naked in front of a bunch of strangers? How about millions of strangers while they gawk at you on a big screen? How about doing all that while getting emotionally naked, too? Segel did all of that when he played the heartbroken Peter Bretter in the 2008 comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall, a man who gets dumped by his girlfriend in the most humiliating way possible: while he’s buck naked. Of course, that nude breakup leads Peter to really find himself (not in that way, gross), follow his passion, and fall in love again.
Serenading His Lady L on Freaks and Geeks
Okay, we take it back. The only thing more terrifying than being naked and crying in front of someone is speak-singing a serenade to your crush. When the well-meaning Nick (Segel) tells his sort-of girlfriend Lindsay just how he feels about her through the Styx song “Lady” on Freaks and Geeks, it’s one of the more cringe-worthy moments on the beloved show. But, it just makes you love Nick all the more for putting himself out there like that, no matter how disastrous it turned out to be.
Jeff, Who Lives at Home, Who Jumps Off a Bridge
While live-at-home slacker Jeff (Segel) spent most of the movie questioning his fate and place in the world by looking for signs, all went quiet and he went into hero mode when he saved the lives of a family whose car careened off a bridge and into water. Doesn’t get much braver than that.
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