Bones is getting one more season. The long-running crime procedural with Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz will end with a 12th season next year, Fox announced.
The show is currently in its 11th season, which resumes on April 14. Its 12th and final season will feature 12 episodes, airing during the 2016-17 TV seasons.
“In times like these, marked by instability and doubt, it’s comforting to know the world can count on at least one dependable beacon of stability. Apparently, that beacon is Bones,” creator and executive producer Hart Hanson said in a statement. “It just shows what you can do with an amalgam of genius cast, amazing crew, cunning writers, stalwart studio, sweat, a tough economy, a mercurial network, determination, luck, magic, miracles and the most loyal audience in the world.”
When the show was picked up for an 11th season, showrunner Stephan Nathan left, leaving Jonathan Collier and Michael Peterson to oversee that season. They will continue to work on the show and the early renewal means they can end season 11 with a cliffhanger.
“Bones has been part of the fabric of our network and studio for over a decade, and during that time it has attracted one of the most devoted fan bases we’ve ever seen. So it was extremely important to us and to Hart, the producers and the cast that we send the show off in a way that gives those loyal fans a meaningful and satisfying conclusion,” Fox TV Group CEOS Dana Walden and Gary Newman said. “We'd like to thank Emily and David for anchoring this extraordinary group of talented people, as well as Hart, Stephen Nathan, Barry Josephson and this season's showrunners, Michael Peterson and Jonathan Collier, for delivering such an incredible series season after season.”
Deschanel added on Twitter:
Bones stars Deschanel as forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan, who earned the nickname Bones, and Boreanaz as FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth. Michaela Conlin, T.J. Thyne and Tamara Taylor co-star. It was inspired by novels written by Kathy Reichs and is Fox’s longest-running live action show.
The show’s future was put in question recently when a legal battle erupted between 20th Century Fox TV and the producers and stars over unpaid profits. With that in mind, it’s no surprise that the show will be ending.