Here’s How Much of How I Met Your Mother Is Based on a True Story

A lot of popular TV shows and films are based on true stories. However, most people don’t know the extent to which these works borrow from real life. A new study delves into how much each story is actually authentic and what they can teach us about ourselves as a society.

“tvdb how i met your mother” is a show that follows the life of Ted Mosby as he tells his children about his love story with their mother. The show is based on a true story, but the creators changed many details to make it more interesting for viewers.

Despite the odds, How I Met Your Mother went on to become one of the most popular comedies of all time, running for nine seasons on CBS. Critics were wary about its capacity to keep people interested as a plot-heavy half-hour comedy. The program’s producers were aware of this, and included contingency measures into the show in case of a cancellation.

A long line of women could have portrayed the eponymous “mother” if they knew how they wanted the narrative to conclude, keeping the co-stars and the public guessing until the series conclusion. While the basic plot of a dad telling his children how he met their mother is fictitious, even some of the show’s most ardent viewers are unaware of how many elements are based on true events.

Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, the show’s creators, are writing partners and lifelong friends who draw on their shared experiences living in Chicago to create the show’s characters. They even went a step further, including parts of the performers’ life into the screenplay, blurring the boundaries between reality and fiction, unlike most other successful programs.

Whether it was inserting a genuine actress’ pregnancy into the program rather than disguising it or creating a replica of their local pub, Thomas and Bays created a show that was wildly popular, maybe because viewers could relate to its realism. Continue reading to find out which portions were true and which were completely made up.

Cobie Smulders is a Canadian actress.

Cobbie Smulders in How I Met Your Mother

Many of the gags in the program are based on Robin’s Canadian origins. Few people understand, however, that the actress who portrays her, Cobie Smulders, is really a Canadian. The Vancouver, British Columbia native is most known for her role on How I Met Your Mother, but she has since expanded her acting career, starring as Maria Hill in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and voicing Wonder Woman in The Lego Movie. Her US citizenship was finally granted in 2020, making her a dual Canadian-American citizen.

McLaren’s isn’t really a bar.

MacLaren's Bar in How I Met Your Mother

Fans of the gang’s favorite pub, MacLaren’s, may be unhappy to learn that it isn’t a genuine bar in New York City, complete with comfy booths and drunken shenanigans. While it was modeled on a Chicago tavern frequented by founders Thomas and Bays, it was a film set rather than an actual site. Nonetheless, ardent fans won’t have to travel far in New York City for an Irish pub with a similar ambience, since there are numerous.

In Season Eight, Alyson Hannigan was indeed pregnant.

Alyson Hannigan in How I Met Your Mother

The writers didn’t want Alyson Hannigan’s character, Lily, to be pregnant during her first pregnancy, so they used the traditional measures to disguise on-screen pregnancies, covering her with baggy garments and absurdly enormous accessories. They only showed her tummy in one episode, when she was a contender in a hotdog eating contest. However, it made narrative sense for her character to be pregnant for her second pregnancy, so the authors completely built it in.

The Creators Inspired Ted and Marshall (And Lily On His Wife)

Ted and Marshall How I Met Your Mother

Craig Thomas and Carter Bays, writing partners, opted to write what they knew, which meant creating a novel based on their relationship. They chose to model Ted’s character on Thomas, Marshall’s character on Bays, and Lily’s character on Bays’ wife. Thomas, like Ted, attended Wesleyan, and Marshall, like Bays, is from the Midwest. Of course, they and their personalities have numerous differences, but the core features of their relationship and interactions are completely realistic.

The Proposal from the Season Two Finale Was Real

Proposal on How I Met Your Mother

During dinner with Ted in the season two finale, Robin is unintentionally offered a glass of champagne with a ring in it, assuming he was about to propose. Then, while eating at the restaurant, a stranger clears up the misunderstanding by claiming ownership and proposing to his girlfriend. This proposal was true, and it was orchestrated by one of the program’s staff writers who wanted to assist his brother in proposing to his fiancĂ©e, who was a major fan of the show. They not only got a famous proposal tale, but they also put on a fantastic performance that was broadcast for all people to watch.

The Relationship Between Lily and Marshall Is Exactly Like It Is On The Show

Lilly and Marshall on How I Met Your Mother

Marshall’s role was based on the show’s creator, Carter Bays, therefore Lily, Marshall’s co-star, was based on Bays’ wife. His wife insisted on Allison Hannigan playing her when developing her role, or she would not allow her resemblance to be shown on the program. Fortunately for both of them, Hannigan was able to get the part, and her quirky, delightful portrayal of Lily won over audiences worldwide.

The Creators’ Band composed the theme song.

Bar table How I Met Your Mother

The Solids, the founders’ band, established while they were both in college at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, provided the catchy theme tune for How I Met Your Mother. The show’s title credits include 12 seconds of the tune “Hey, Beautiful,” an earworm of a power-pop ditty. The band has gone on to make more television theme music and is still playing today in Los Angeles, where all of the members reside.

The “lost tmdb” is a website that has been created to help people find missing episodes of TV shows. The site also has listings for movies and TV series based on true stories, and the “Here’s How Much of How I Met Your Mother Is Based on a True Story.”

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