A Bones Reboot Could Happen (But It's Complicated)

"Bones" has been off the air for more than six years. But in an age where broadcast TV shows are finding big audiences on streaming, it feels like this is exactly the kind of series that could be primed for a revival. And the show's creator Hart Hanson actually agrees. However, it's not as simple as getting everyone to agree to come back, as there are some complicated business matters that would need to be ironed out first.

"We are in contact with each other. Everybody on 'Bones' is in contact with each other. At separate times, it's like, 'What are you doing? What's the availability?'" Hanson said to Variety in July of this year. So, at the very least, it seems like stars Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz, as well as other key players, like each other and would be open to a revival. But Hanson also explained that Disney's purchase of Fox back in 2019 made such a prospect far more complicated than it might otherwise have been:

"It's complicated now because Fox broadcast Bones, but Disney now bought 20th, so they own [the show]. It would take a million agents and lawyers to figure out who owns what and what platform it would show on... But we do keep talking. And every once in a while, we are all nostalgic enough to think, 'Maybe we should do it again.' Who knows? Maybe this will bump-start us."

In an era when Netflix and other streamers have a hard time keeping a show alive for just a few seasons, what "Bones" accomplished feels downright alien to consider. The show ran for a wildly impressive 12 seasons from 2005 to 2017, airing a whopping total of 246 episodes. It was a big hit for Fox in its day, and it has since been a mainstay on streaming, particularly on Hulu. If revival talks get serious, could Fox and Disney come to the table to sort this all out?

If the desire were truly there, it certainly seems doable. Fox settled a lawsuit regarding profit participation involving Deschanel, Boreanaz, executive producer Barry Josephson, and author Kathy Reichs back in 2019. With the money sorted out and, presumably, water under the bridge, one imagines the key creatives would be happy to come to the table to bring back "Bones." But it would seem to make more sense as a Hulu revival, rather than something that would be broadcast on Fox. Someone might be left out in the cold, and that's exactly what Hanson is getting at. It's complicated.

But if someone wanted it to happen badly enough, things can be ironed out. Maybe they could work out a deal where "Bones" exists on two platforms. Maybe Fox pays Disney to let it happen, or vice versa. Either way, with the recent success of "Suits" on Netflix, it feels like other long-running traditional TV shows are going to be looked at as potential goldmines. So don't rule out a reunion between Temperance "Bones" Brennan and Seeley Booth just yet.

"Bones" is currently streaming on Hulu.