The ninth and final season of How I Met Your Mother, an American sitcom created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, premiered on CBS on September 23, 2013,[1] with two episodes, and concluded on March 31, 2014.

[6] During the course of the weekend, "The Mother" (Milioti) is separately introduced to Robin, Barney, Lily (Alyson Hannigan), and Marshall (Jason Segel), before finally meeting Ted (Josh Radnor).

The season also features frequent flashbacks and flashforwards in order to fully integrate The Mother's character with the rest of the cast.

Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, and Alyson Hannigan all reprise their roles in this season.

[12] By 2012, Deadline Hollywood reported that CBS, 20th Century Fox, and all regular cast members except Segel wanted to continue with a ninth season.

[16] Milioti was chosen partly because her musical history and time on Broadway, including her performance in Once, would have allowed her to play the role of The Mother, a musician, more convincingly.

[17] Bays and Thomas wanted to avoid casting someone who was well-known, fearing that the audiences' preconceptions of a famous actress might spill into her performance in the role.

[19] Bill Kuchman from TV.com observed that, because "Milioti is a blank canvas to many of us", she has the "freedom to create a How I Met Your Mother character that's free of the burden of being compared to her past work".

[20] When asked at Comic-Con about guest stars, Bays revealed that, "If there's someone we loved over the course of the series, there's a good chance they're coming back [for the final season].

"[21] Returning guest stars include Wayne Brady and John Lithgow as Barney's brother and father, respectively, and Ellen D. Williams as Robin's co-worker Patrice.

The climax was filmed on a set closed to everyone except Bays, Thomas, a camera operator, and Fonseca and Henrie, who signed non-disclosure agreements.