How I Met Your Mother co-creator Carter Bays recently told The Hollywood Reporter he was not expecting the hit sitcom to last beyond Season 4, but now they couldn't figure out yet whether the eighth season would be the last. Are the producers ready to say goodbye to the show?

"We know how we want to end it. Midway through the first season, we had an idea of, 'OK, this will be a cool ending for the story,' thinking it will be a good ending for season four when the show gets canceled. We didn't expect it to go this long," Bays said.

Ted Mosby ready to meet 'mother?'

In an interview last month, Bays noted the end of Season 7 has put Ted Mosby in a really good place - right where he is ready for a new chapter.

"(N)ow we're getting to the fun stuff of the show," Bays told Matt Noble in an interview with Television Awards Blog. "It's hard not to be excited by that."

For his part, co-creator Craig Thomas has hinted the creative team would appreciate an early notice if Season 8 would be the last season because they have big plans for the last season. Right now, they have designed Season 8 as if it would just be another season.

Cast contracts expiring

Meanwhile, most of the cast have expiring contracts at the end of Season 8. As long as they have not sat down for negotiations, there is no telling whether the gang would be up for Season 9 this early.

At least one of the cast sounded unwilling to say goodbye just yet.

"You would think, at this point, we would be figuring out a way to end this... But we seem to be doing better than we ever have, so we will continue as long as everybody wants us to," Cobie Smulders (playing Robin Scherbatsky) said in an interview.

Leave while on top

With improved ratings last season, CBS bosses, the producers and the cast are still wondering whether it's time to show the 'mother' already, or watch Ted Mosby date her for at least an entire season before capping the sitcom. The question is: Wouldn't it be great to leave while you're on top of your game?

The showrunners and cast could be optimistic and think, the fans might show an even stronger interest next season. But for a sitcom that is called "How I Met Your Mother," eight seasons seem more than enough. Exiting high at the end of eighth season should be the top concern now.

It does show, however, that HIMYM's avid fans are not ready to say goodbye, just yet. Then again, who was ready in 2004 when 'Friends' said goodbye after 10 years?

Also read:

How I Met Your Mother Co-creator Carter Bays: "Now we're getting to the fun stuff of the show"

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