Neil Patrick Harris to play Count Olaf in Netflix adaptation of Lemmony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Jim Carrey played the character in the 2004 film adaptation

The film adaptation of Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events was supposed to launch a huge franchise in the veins of Harry Potter, with Jim Carrey’s Count Olaf at the centre.

Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned, with the sequel being cancelled, only to be picked up by Netflix 10 years after the original’s release.

With the showrunner, Mark Hudis, having just left the project with no replacement, The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Neil Patrick Harris is in talks to star.

Neil Patrick Harris (Getty Images)

A Series of Unfortunate Events revolves around three orphaned children - Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire – who get adopted by their evil uncle, Count Olaf.

The How I Met Your Mother alumni will play the dastardly villain, while Daniel Handler – who writes under the pen name Lemony Snicket – will act as executive producer.

Harris hasn’t appeared as a long running reoccurring character in a TV show since How I Met Your Mother finished in 2014,while his last appearance in a film was 2014’s Gone Girl.

In the meantime, the 42-year-old hosted last year’s Oscars and the variety series Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris, a US adaptation of Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway. It was cancelled after eight episodes.

Netflix picked up A Series of Unfortunate Events in 2014, ordering 13-episodes which will likely premier on the service later this year.