‘How I Met Your Mother’ Season 8: Barney Getting Another Love Interest?

Whether or not the current season of 'How I Met Your Mother' winds up being the final year for Ted, Marshall and Lily, it's no secret that fans have been clamoring for the inevitable reunion of Robin and Barney. The future certainly points to it, though the current season has continued to pile obstacles in between, so is another on the horizon? 'Pretty Little Liars' star Ashley Benson might just be the next wrinkle between Robin and Barney!

Fasten your seatbelts 'How I Met Your Mother' fans, Robin and Barney might not be headed down the aisle just yet. All season we've seen new obstacles in front of the pair's inevitable reunion, between Nick, Quinn and now Patrice, but now there might be yet another complication. CBS recently tweeted that 'Pretty Little Liars' star Ashley Benson will appear in the upcoming January 21 episode as "Barney's ????," though TVLine believes she'll be an unconventional love interest to one member of the gang.

Benson's casting could imply a number of things, and CBS' secrecy could intend to dissociate her from Barney's usual M.O. Might she be an unheard of relation of Barney's that Ted comes to fixate on, instead? Meanwhile, CBS has yet to issue an official response to the leak of Rachel Bilson's casting, while fans still wait for announcements on a ninth season beyond the current year.

What say you? Will Robin and Barney finally get back together in the near future? Who might Ashley Benson really play? Give us your 'How I Met Your Mother' predictions in the comments!