David Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel were stars of the long-running Fox television series BONE for 12 seasons. The show battled bad grades, slot changes, and a series finale interrupted by President Trump’s acceptance speech.
During the show’s tenure, Boreanaz battled allegations of harassment and infidelity issues while his wife was pregnant with their third child. Deschanel, who admittedly didn’t appreciate the blood and gore of the procedural series, has also been implicated in social media attacks surrounding her vegan pregnancy.
The biggest controversy the two actors faced was the multi-million dollar lawsuit they filed against their employer.
“Bones”: the long series
Deschanel played Dr. Temperance “Bones” Brennan in the series, working as a forensic anthropologist and FBI collaborator.
Boreanaz, known for his iconic roles on Buffy the vampire slayer and its derivative series, Angel, portrays FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth.
The procedural crime drama series ran from 2005 to 2017. It was loosely based on the life of the producer. Kathy reichs, forensic scientist and archaeologist, just like his main character. Her Temperance Brennan novels inspired BONE, who focused on the FBI files related to human remains.
In the fourth season, the two talented actors became producers, and eventually Boreanaz dabbled in directing. After BONE production finished, the hardworking actor switched to CBS series Seal Team, which was recently renewed for a fifth season.
Why the ‘Bones’ actors sued the network
According to Screen cry, the two actors “felt that they were a big draw for viewers and felt that they had been wronged with regard to their share of the salary”.
In 2015, Deschanel and Boreanaz filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the Fox Network. Apparently, the actors weren’t looking for a higher salary, but rather a 3% cut in their share of the profit from the long-running series.
Variety reported that the cast, along with Reichs and executive producer Barry Josephson, claimed that “20th Century Fox television studio accepted below-market rates by licensing Fox and later Hulu for reruns. Participants claim they were swindled out of tens of millions of dollars in profit sharing because of these low deals.
Outcome of the trial
TMZ reported in 2019 that Deschanel and Boreanaz won their lawsuit against FOX for an astonishing $ 179 million in punitive damages.
The court accepted the BONE the actors owed backend payments involving the show’s distribution on Hulu and several other streaming platforms. FOX was criticized in arbitration for “lying and concealing the financial details of the deal.”
After the decision, Deschanel reportedly said, “We are so proud of the hard work we have done on Bones over 12 seasons and we have always wanted Fox to live up to their promises and contractual obligations.” Boreanaz said: “It is clear that what we have been saying from the start was true: we owed extra compensation for our work.”
Unhappy with the results, FOX responded by saying, “Fox will not allow this blatant injustice, riddled with errors and gratuitous attacks of character, to continue and will vigorously challenge the decision in court. The network immediately filed an appeal.
Hollywood journalist said that in May 2019, a Los Angeles court ruled that the actors were entitled to $ 51 million in actual damages and legal fees, but were not eligible to receive punitive damages. Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier said, “At Fox Entertainment, we believe in creating and sharing with talent the holy grail of television: the backend.
In September 2019, after another appeal, the parties involved finally came to an agreement, but the terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Most likely it was a nice sum since, according to Celebrity Net Worth, both Deschanel and Boreanaz, who were paid $ 250,000 per episode on BONE, each has an estimated net worth of $ 30 million.
Deschanel said Hollywood journalist, “I can’t really talk about it because it continues.” The mother of two admitted that she was now “nervous to sign a contract”.
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