After eight seasons of build-up, the namesake "mother" on CBS's How I Met Your Mother was
finally revealed in 2013.
It was one of the most anticipated moments in TV history, so the absolute perfect actress
had to be cast.
The producers somehow found the right woman for the job: a then little-known actress named
Cristin Milioti.
Here's what else she's appeared in, both before and after How I Met Your Mother.
Once (Broadway)
Fans of the New York theater scene may recognize Milioti from her stage work.
She's performed steadily both on and off Broadway for more than a decade.
Most notably, when the 2007 indie hit Once was adapted for the theater in 2011 theater,
Milioti played the unnamed female lead, earning a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance
by a Leading Actress in a Musical.
The Sopranos
While pursuing a career as a stage actor in New York, Milioti landed roles in some TV
productions based out of the Tri-State area, including The Sopranos.
Toward the end of the HBO mob drama's run, Milioti played Catherine Sacrimoni, daughter
of John Sacrimoni, the ruthless boss of the Lupertazzi crime family.
"You're the one that wanted a big wedding!"
"Catherine, your sister has enough to deal with without the commentary."
30 Rock
Another New York-based TV show that hired Milioti was NBC's 30 Rock.
In 2011, Milioti portrayed a seemingly shallow standup comedian named Abby Flynn who affects
a so-called "sexy baby" voice.
Tina Fey's Liz Lemon hires her to be a writer for TGS with Tracy Jordan after a blog accuses
the sketch comedy show of being misogynistic.
"Lemon, is that the new woman you hired?"
"Is it cold in here, or is it just that I'm not wearing any underwear?"
Milioti has to do some high-wire comic acting—as it turns out, the Abby Flynn act is a ruse;
she's really a comedian named Abby Grossman hiding from a crazed ex-husband.
Sleepwalk With Me
Stand-up comedian, actor, and writer Mike Birbiglia has presented Sleepwalk With Me
as a one-man show, a book, and, in 2012, a feature film.
In the largely autobiographical dramedy about the comedian's history of severe sleep disorders,
along with his anxieties over his career and romantic life, Milioti portrayed Janet Pandamiglio,
Birbiglia's sister.
The film was a critical hit and played well on the festival circuit, winning an Audience
Award at the Sundance Film Festival.
The Wolf of Wall Street
Milioti became a full-time cast member of How I Met Your Mother in the fall of 2013,
right around the same time as the release of The Wolf of Wall Street, a darkly comic
biopic about the rise and fall of disgraced stockbroker Jordan Belfort, played by Leonardo
DiCaprio.
Milioti portrayed Teresa, Jordan's sweet and patient first wife, later abandoned for a
blonde bombshell played by Margot Robbie.
The Garden State native is 100% New Jersey in the role, with an accent as big and bold
as her 1980s hair.
A to Z
Unfortunately, the very nature of her role on How I Met Your Mother meant Milioti was
out of work after the show's final season.
But by fall 2014, Milioti was already starring in another network sitcom.
Something of a successor to How I Met Your Mother with its rom-com sensibility and slow-build
storyline, NBC's A to Z aimed to tell the complete story of a relationship from the
"meet cute" to the "happily ever after" … or the split.
Ben Feldman of Mad Men portrayed Andrew opposite Milioti's Zelda.
Despite some critical praise for the show and the cast, the series didn't attract much
of an audience, and NBC broke up with A to Z after 13 episodes.
Fargo
Milioti popped up in a small but pivotal role in the second season of FX's Fargo.
Milioti's character is dying of cancer, and her appearance heartbreakingly links the second
season of the series with the first.
In the '70s-set second season, Milioti plays Betsy Solverson, wife of state trooper Lou.
Their daughter, Molly grows up to become a cop, too… as played by Allison Tolman in
the 2006-set first season.
The Mindy Project
In 2015, Milioti scored a recurring role on The Mindy Project.
She played Whitney, a tough-as-nails, workaholic hedge fund manager.
Milioti's character appeared in five episodes, dating one of the doctors in the sitcom's
central medical practice and also becoming a new, if brief, best friend for Mindy.
Whitney is a financial genius who helps the scatterbrained Mindy get her finances in order.
It also turns out that Whitney's a recovering cocaine addict, giving Milioti a chance to
do some dark-yet-wacky comedy.
"Why don't we hang out tonight.
How's 9?"
"Five works better for me given my situation and because 5:10 is the 4:20 of cocaine."
"Oh yeah, of course"
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