‘How I Met Your Mother’: When Did Ted’s Children Film Their Ending Scenes?

How I Met Your Mother is a TV show that ran for nine seasons—from 2005 to 2014. The series ended with a plot twist that attracted mixed reactions from fans.

One of the most interesting parts of the ending was that the actors who played Ted Mosby’s two kids did not seem to age at all throughout the show’s run. However, their scenes in the finale indicated that they were aware of the ending of HIMYM. So when did the actors film their ending scenes?

Who played Ted’s children on ‘How I Met Your Mother’?

Ted’s children are Penny and Luke Mosby. They were portrayed by Lyndsy Fonseca and David Henrie, respectively.

According to the show, Penny and Luke are teenagers in the year 2030—when Ted begins telling them the story of how he met their mother. Although Fonseca and Henrie aged in real life from 2005 to 2014, their characters remained the same year after year.

When did Ted’s children film their ending scenes?

Fonseca and Henrie filmed all their scenes during the first few seasons of the show, and this stock footage was used throughout the course of the show. The finale was no different—Fonseca and Henrie filmed their parts in the ending secretly.

“We were sitting on set then out of nowhere everyone leaves,” Henrie shared in 2014, according to Us Weekly. “They bring in these contracts, Lyndsy and I sign them. Then the show runners go ‘We’re going to tell you how the show ends.’”

Fonseca and Henrie managed to keep the controversial ending a secret for almost 10 years. Henrie admitted that some people had tried to get some information out of him, but he still kept quiet.

“I’m 24 now, but when I turned 21 I started going out with my buddies. Everyone was always asking me ‘Dude, who’s the mom? Who’s the mom?’” he said. “People would try and bribe me with all sorts of alcohol, but I kept silent. I didn’t tell anyone. I didn’t even tell my mother.”

The other cast members also knew what the ending would be

Fonseca and Henrie were not the only cast members who knew about the fate of The Mother. Alyson Hannigan, who played Lily Aldrin, also said she knew The Mother would die.

“I knew that was the case,” Hannigan explained to Huffpost. “I didn’t know who the mom was going to be, but I did know that the reason he was telling all these stories is because she passed away, which was very sweet.”

While fans now know The Mother is Tracy McConnell, who is played by Cristin Milioti, there was also another option for The Mother to be someone had the show ended earlier.

The show’s co-creators Craig Thomas and Carter Bays shared in a Reddit AMA that Ted’s first girlfriend in season 1, Victoria, would have been The Mother if HIMYM did not make it past season 1.

Hannigan also admitted that she wanted for Victoria to be The Mother.