Cobie Smulders Admits to Whispering ‘Inappropriate’ Things to ‘How I Met Your Mother’ Co-Star Josh Radnor Before Sex Scenes

Cobie Smulders was putting in the work behind the scenes of her steamier moments with How I Met Your Mother co-star Josh Radnor.

Smulders, who played Robin Scherbatsky, the on-again, off-again partner of Radnor’s Ted Mosby, revealed on Monday’s episode of Radnor and co-creator Craig Thomas’ How We Made Your Mother podcast that she would whisper “extremely inappropriate” things to Radnor before filming their sex scenes.

“Josh and I had quite a few intimate scenes, and so I would try to, as much as humanly possible, before we would roll, whisper something to Josh that was just extremely inappropriate,” Smulders recalled. As a “good scene partner,” Smulders said it only felt right as an actor to lay out “the moment before” shooting commenced, admitting that “usually it was sexual.”

“Because there were a lot of post-coital scenes, yeah,” Radnor agreed.

Smulders agreed, “I feel like I’m an amazing scene partner and I’m just thinking about the other person and making sure that they’re comfortable, making sure that there’s a connection there,” as Radnor laughed.

“And so I would just sort of set us up before we actually started the scene in our speaking roles, just with like, ‘This is what just transpired between us,’” Smulders continued, pointing out that Radnor usually “would not be able to say anything” as his face turned the same red it was turning during their conversation on the podcast.

Radnor admitted that while their co-star Neil Patrick Harris, who played Barney Stinson on the show, could also be “disgusting” with what he whispered before a scene began, whispering things to him before a scene, Smulders was by far the dirtiest. “Neil has a real ability to be gross,” Radnor said. “He is nothing compared to the depravity that Cobie Smulders laid out.”

Thomas laughed as he admitted that he and the other producers had no idea this was happening on set, and Radnor pointed out that Smulders was particularly adept at how she timed her comments.

“She would time it in such a way that she would finish saying [it], she would stick the landing, and they would say ‘action,’ and I couldn’t speak,” Radnor said. “They’re fond memories, but I also was immobilized by Cobie’s visionary. You could monetize this in some way, Cobie, like if acting stops, you know what I’m saying? I think you could write just the filthiest romance novels.”

He continued, “I’m telling you, you have a real talent for spinning the dirtiest webs of narrative, it was always shocking to me. Delightful in its own way.”