HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER Bosses on Writing Season 8 as if it’s the Last, What they Want to Do Before it Ends, and More

While the fate of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER beyond this season is very much up in the air, the creators told reporters today that they are viewing this year as the end of the road.

“We’re writing this season like it’s the end,” HIMYM co-creator Craig Thomas said. “We sort of have a Plan A and a Plan B going. But we’re approaching the point where those two things would diverge.”

While he said there are currently “discussions” going on right now with the cast and the studio/network to extend the series to a possible season 9, he brushed off the idea that they would continue the show without any of the five leads. “No, never ever ever,” Thomas insisted. “We would never do it. It’s a family, and we’re finishing this thing together.”

And fans may be anxious to know whether the show will continue, the uncertainty is making things a little bit difficult for the writers, Thomas and co-creator Carter Bays admitted.

“It gets more and more difficult as it goes on [because] ultimately it’s going to be more and more work that we’re going to have to throw out if this isn’t our last season,” Bays said. “So we’d like to know as soon as possible. It’s a lot of big machinery we’re moving around.”

“We’re going to need to know pretty soon,” Thomas added. “We have plenty of ideas of how to extend the series one more season, and that could be great, but wrapping it up in season 8 would be amazing. There’s a part of us as writers, we’re drawn to that a little bit because it’s exciting. We get to answer everything and every episode of the season is so much more important. It’s something very thrilling, nostalgic and also very sad to think about…We’re okay with either outcome and we’re really writing it as if it’s the end.”

However, there is one bright side about not knowing whether the show will continue — they’re not mourning the loss of the series yet.

“The upside of it is we’re not coming to work and sobbing every day,” Thomas said. “‘It’s the last time we’ll do this! We only have 18 more episodes!’ There’s actually something merciful about that because it’s going to be so hard saying goodbye to it…If this is the last season of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, it’s everything we ever dreamed of and more, and eight seasons is great. That being said, do we have a ninth season in us? Absolutely. We could do a ninth season if it was possible. ”

But before the show ends, Bays said there is one little stunt they’d like to do.

“We have a plan — and this might be a very expensive plan — but we have a plan to bring back many of the people we’ve had on the show,” Bays teased. “Not to completely steal their idea, but I enjoyed the SEINFELD finale where you saw everyone who has ever been on the show. We have a way to kind of do that that fits in with the universe of our show. So hopefully there will be a cavalcade [of guest stars before the show ends].” (But no, the series isn’t ending with the gang on trial.)

In the meantime, there is one new bit of casting news to report: Joe Lo Truglio will appear in the 7th and 8th episode of the year.

“[Lo Truglio] plays another lawyer in Marshall’s law firm,” Thomas said. “He’s the co-partner. He plays Martin Short’s co-partner.”

–

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER returns Monday, September 24th at 8 PM on CBS. Make sure to come back after the episode airs for more from Bays and Thomas!