Picking Pilots: Will 'How I Met Your Dad,' Alyson Hannigan and Matthew Perry All Make It to the Air?

Last week CBS head Les Moonves said that it's likely his network will pick up only four new series—two comedies and two dramas—for the fall season. That's good news for most of the shows in the line up right now, but it's bad news for the pilots that the network has ordered, most of which won't make it to the air, at least not in September.

CBS has ordered some high-profile pilots, and figuring out which of them to say no to might not be so easy. In the pile of sitcom pilots, there are new shows from established producers of hit shows, big-name creators and recognized stars. If only two sitcoms make it onto the schedule, some celebrities are going to experience rejection.

The sitcom pilot that's getting the most attention is "How I Met Your Dad," the spin-off from "How I Met Your Mother" creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas; everyone's talking about it, but fans of the original series are not enthusiastic. If the pilot is good, CBS will have to decide if it's likely to win over skeptical audiences.

There's also "More Time with Family." It was co-created by Matt Damon and executive produced by Ben Affleck. Its stars comedian Tom Papa and Alyson Hannigan ("How I Met Your Mother," "Buffy The Vampire Slayer"). It won't be easy to turn this one down, either.

The network will have to turn one of them down, though, if it wants to make room for Matthew Perry's update of "The Odd Couple." "Friends" alum Perry will produce and star as the slovenly Oscar Madison, while Thomas Lennon ("Reno 911!") will play neat freak Felix Unger.

Those three sitcoms with big names attached are 50% more pilots than the network needs to fill two slots, and that still leaves the other eight pilots that are in production, including a Jim Gaffigan vehicle and a version of a French comedy about a misanthropic cab driver.