Co-star Emily Deschanel also discussed the “very satisfying” final episodes of the long-running procedural during the show’s last-ever TCA panel.
David Boreanaz had a little fun toying with the emotions of loyal Bones viewers at the start of the show’s last-ever Television Critics Association’s winter press tour panel.
“Before we start this final chapter, we just got an official two-year pickup,” the actor told reporters with a laugh on Wednesday.
It was a particularly spot-on joke considering the procedural’s consistent bubble status over the years. “We’ve had several season finales that could have been our last, and at times we didn’t know if it would be our last,” said co-star Emily Deschanel. “There’s been times when we didn’t know if we’d be picked.”
Creator Hart Hanson called the Bones team the “cockroaches” of the network. “We were on the bubble all the time. I felt like I was angry all the time,” he recalled. “This amazing thing happened that our fans who are loud and passionate and very opinionated, would follow us. … So we started to feel kind of like, ‘Go ahead, try to kill us.'”
Co-showrunner and executive producer Jonathan Collier admitted it was “challenging” having to craft several season finales that could also serve as potential series finales. “It was very satisfying to end the show for good” he said.
Fox made it clear last spring that the end was near when it picked up Bones for a shortened 12-episode season 12. “It wasn’t our decision,” Hanson said. “I’m not sure anyone is terribly upset or terribly shocked that it would be the last year.”
Speaking about the abbreviated season, the stars said it still felt like a full 22-episode order. “It’s 12 episodes that feels like a full order,” said Boreanaz, with Deschanel calling the final run “very satisfying.”
Bones hasn’t left the air just yet, but with Fox so high on revivals as of late (see: The X-Files, 24: Legacy, Prison Break), the question soon turned to whether fans should hold out hope for a Bones revival.
“Maybe we kill them all? You don’t know,” Hanson said, cracking a smile. “I think those things are always possible and very desirable.”
However, Boreanaz was more cautious about revisiting his role of Seeley Booth. “Everything is possible in life, but I tend to like to go forward. I don’t like to go backwards,” said the actor. “I don’t like reunions, and I don’t like to go back.”
Deschanel was more diplomatic. “I would like some time before I consider that. We’ve put 12 years into the show,” she said. “It’d be really weird to say goodbye, very emotional to say goodbye, and then next week, we’re coming back.
“That’s not to say I wouldn’t consider it,” she continued. “We need to have some time pass before we consider that.”
Bones airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Fox.
