12 years is a long time to keep a TV marriage going, yet that's precisely what David Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel managed to do on "Bones." Granted, their on-screen counterparts, Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan and FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth, weren't literally married the entire time (they didn't tie the knot until season 9), but for all practical purposes, they might as well have been. The two actors were also instrumental in ensuring that "Bones" was more of a character-driven procedural than Fox initially had in mind, even taking extra time to work with an actor coach on refining their chemistry. Indeed, it's difficult to imagine the show would've had anywhere near the longevity it achieved had its stars and creator Hart Hanson been content to merely xerox "The X-Files" like the network had wanted.
Even with that, though, the series had a hard fight to make it to 12 seasons. Whether it was Fox constantly looking for excuses to cancel Hanson's sometimes zany and romantic, sometimes absolutely disgusting murder investigation show, the disturbing sexual harassment allegations raised against Boreanaz partway through its run, or longtime cast members like John Francis Daley being forced to leave the series in order to pursue other professional endeavors, it was anything but smooth sailing for "Bones" on the way to its golden years in syndication and streaming. Still, through thick and thin, Boreanaz and Deschanel were the glue that kept the ship from falling apart. In fact, by all accounts, the "Bones" duo were the all-too-rare example of co-workers who actually respected another offscreen as much as they did when the cameras were rolling.
As boring as that might've been for all the TV fans who can't get enough of messy behind-the-scenes drama, this undoubtedly made Hanson's life easier -- so much so that he often trusted Boreanaz and Deschanel to improvise key moments on "Bones," including the show's final scene.