A Bones Revival Looks More Likely Than Ever
In a world where revivals and reboots are all the rage, the possibility of Bones returning less than a decade after the series finale is pretty high, especially with the original show’s cast members on board. The Fox police procedural drama, created by Hart Hanson, debuted in September 2005 and ran for 12 seasons and 246 episodes before ending in March 2017. Throughout its run on television, the series featured its main characters (Emily Deschanel’s Temperance “Bones” Brennan and David Boreanaz’s Seeley Booth) chasing down terrible Bones criminals, but the dynamic between the two leads is what made the show memorable.
Bones is loosely based on the life and novels of forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs, with Temperance Brennan named after the main character in Reichs’s book series. Emily Deschanel’s Brennan, meanwhile, is also a successful crime fiction writer in Bones, with her books featuring a forensic anthropologist character named Kathy Reichs.
Bones features an ensemble cast, including Michaela Conlin as Angela Montenegro, Eric Millegan as Dr. Zack Addy, T. J. Thyne as Jack Hodgins, Tamara Taylor as Camille Saroyan, John Francis Daley as Lance Sweets, and John Boyd as James Aubrey, in addition to Deschanel as Brennan and Boreanaz as Booth. While all the characters are memorable, Booth and Brennan and their relationship are Bones’s. Without Boreanaz and Deschanel, Bones wouldn’t be as successful as it is, and these two actors will have to be involved if there’s to be a revival.
In early September 2024, Kathy Reichs (the inspiration for the Fox TV show and one of the show’s producers) expressed interest in reviving Bones after Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz had already done so. On X, Reichs tweeted an image explaining that both Deschanel and Boreanaz were open to returning to the Bones universe. The forensic anthropologist/writer/producer wrote, “And so am I!” So, three Bones alumni who were heavily involved in the making of the original series (Deschanel and Boreanaz were also producers) revealed that they would be involved if given the green light.
With Deschanel, Boreanaz, and Reichs all interested in reviving Bones and possibly season 13, a return to the police procedural drama’s universe seems more likely than ever. Of course, neither Fox nor Disney (which owns 20th Century Fox Television, now known as 20th Television) have commented or announced the possibility of reviving Bones. But given the curiosity of fans, the popularity of the original show, and the backing of Deschanel, Boreanaz, and Reichs, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before Booth, Brennan, and the gang return to the small screen.
