A Moment From Bones Season 8 Had Emily Deschanel Completely 'Embarrassed'
Never let it be said that "Bones" was above using its weekly murder investigation format to put its heroes in highly improbable situations for a laugh. In point of fact, the show's writers seized every excuse they could contrive to push Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz) out of their element, whether that meant going undercover at a circus or entering the squared circle as part of an episode that was itself an irreverent "Simpsons" Easter egg hunt. 10 bucks say you can already guess what happened when the Jeffersonian crew found themselves looking into the apparent murder of a professional ballroom dancer in season 8, episode 10, "The Diamond in the Rough."
Sure enough, faster than you can argue that "Strictly Ballroom" is Baz Luhrmann's second-best movie (never let it be said that I myself am above contriving things for my own purposes), Bones and Booth dust off their intentionally ludicrous alter egos — the Canadian couple Wanda and Buck Moosejaw — and disguise themselves as dancers at a competition in the hopes of sussing out the culprit. Booth, in this case, is the hesitant party, although not for lack of experience; as it turns out, he actually learned how to dance from his mother growing up and would later use that expertise to make ends meet in college.
Bones, on the other hand, is uncharacteristically chipper about putting her waltzing talents to the test and eventually does so with uninhibited gusto — while also being decidedly terrible at it. Not that she's at all self-conscious about her lack of rhythm and grace (nor should she be!) as she sets about cutting a rug with Booth at the end of the episode. As for Deschanel ... well, she was just happy that Bones was happy.
Bones dances like nobody's watching
Few things are probably more mortifying for actors than having to dance for a role when dancing really isn't their thing, as Molly Ringwald could tell you from her experience filming "The Breakfast Club." Then again, having to play a character who is bad at dancing themselves might just take the cake in that department. Deschanel admitted as much while discussing "Diamond in the Rough" with TV Tango in 2013:
"[Laughing] Watching the episode is like watching ... I don't know. I was embarrassed. Even though I chose to do those things on purpose, it was just embarrassing."
Deschanel was quick to clarify that she still enjoyed doing the episode and fully committed to the bit, much as she did with any other "Bones" misadventure involving physical comedy. The key, as she saw it, was tapping into Bones' inner child:
"Brennan thought she could sing and her mom told her she could sing and she sings and it's OK. Then, Brennan thinks that she can dance and she's committed to dancing. I kind of go back to the child in the character, and think, 'OK, this is Brennan as a child thinking she can dance.' Just committing completely to this dance competition, loving it so much, but having no clue how bad she is. [Laughing] That's just so fun for me; I loved it."
The series' flights of fancy were surely also part of what kept Deschanel and her co-workers sticking around for 12 whole years of murder investigating. If all you're tackling are variations on the same stone-faced plotlines week after week, your show is inevitably going to become a slog for both your cast and those watching at home. You need breaks in the routine to liven things up, even if it takes more than a little forced silliness to bring them about.