David Boreanaz

Preview! Bones Is Finally Getting Lucky in Love

Things are looking up for Dr. Temperance Brennan. While her dating life is usually filled with jerks or murderers, she’s actually about to meet a nice guy for a change. Eddie McClintock is joining Fox’s Bones for a bit, starting tonight at 8 pm/ET, playing an FBI agent who manages to hold his own with the esteemed Dr. Brennan while Booth is sidelined. Coming between the partners, who have a simmering unspoken connection, wasn’t easy, but McClintock was up for the task. TVGuide.com caught up with the actor (and new dad) to learn more about this juicy role.

TVGuide.com: Brennan hasn’t had the best luck with guys. There’s a lot of pressure there.

Eddie McClintock: I know. Plus there is all that fan stuff, where they want David [Boreanaz] and Emily [Deschanel] to be together. I think that they made my character likable enough that the fans shouldn’t have too much of a problem with it.

TVGuide.com: How did you land this role?

McClintock: I was working on another Fox show, The Winner [premiering March 4], with Rob Corddry. I think it is going to be good, he’s a likable guy. I hope it catches on for him. I was taping that show and Marcia Shulman, the VP of casting at Fox, who has been in my corner since I started acting, saw me. We talked for a few minutes, and then an hour later she walked up with the casting director of Bones and the script and said, "We want you to read this and come in tomorrow and [audition]."

TVGuide.com: No pressure!

McClintock: [Laughs] No pressure. So I did [audition], and they gave me the job as I was walking out. [Executive producer] Hart [Hanson] came out and said, "We’ll see you on the set on Monday."

TVGuide.com: That’s kind of unbelievable. Very much the right place at the right time.

McClintock: That’s the first time ever that that’s happened to me.

TVGuide.com: Were you a fan of Bones?

McClintock: Um... no. For no other reason than I don’t really watch episodic television. I’m kind of jaded and bitter, and it is hard for me to watch someone else do what I feel I should be doing myself. So most of what I watch is on the Military channel and Discovery, and a lot of Sesame Street now because I’ve got kids. We have an 18-month-old and a month-and-a-half-old.

TVGuide.com: So basically you just aren’t sleeping.

McClintock: No. I haven’t slept at all, and my wife has slept even less. It is pretty brutal, but good. So anyway, I don’t really watch the show, but when Marsha approached me about doing it, I was like, "You’re joking right?" And she’s like, "No, why?" "Because everybody thinks I’m David Boreanaz." I’ve actually signed a few autographs as him.

TVGuide.com: There is a definite resemblance there.

McClintock: I still get it all the time. When I met [David] he’s like, "People ever tell you that you look like [One Tree Hill’s] Craig Sheffer?" I’m like, "Yeah.... But you know who they tell me I look more like is you." That was kind of a cool little bonding moment.

TVGuide.com: How many episodes are you doing?

McClintock: I did four, and Hart told me there would be more. When my last episode comes about, the way they left it is that [Bones and Tim] are very much enmeshed. It’s nice because the easy way to get rid of the guy is to make him into a jerk or a liar, some kind of an a—hole. They didn’t do that and I appreciate that.

TVGuide.com: I like that Tim isn’t such a gung-ho typical FBI agent. He’s still got ambitions outside of law enforcement.

McClintock: Yeah. He’s got his eye on that boat.

TVGuide.com: Are we going to see any friction between you and Booth?

McClintock: None other than a kind of sibling rivalry between the two of them. It is all friendly. Sullivan is kind of messing around in his territory a little bit.

TVGuide.com: Working with his partner...

McClintock: With his partner, yeah. But I don’t think Booth wants to acknowledge his attraction for her.

TVGuide.com: We also saw you on TBS’ My Boys....

McClintock: I got dumped! I think it was the hair. But they told me over there that Hank is going to be kind of like the "Mr. Big" character possibly, so I think I’ll be coming back. I hope so, I had a great time. It was a nice bunch of people. Hopefully by then I’ll be on my own show.

TVGuide.com: Yeah. I was sad that Crumbs got canceled so quickly.

McClintock: Yeah, it is always a disappointment when you get to know people very well. We had done 13 episodes, and I felt like we were getting in a groove. That’s my fourth canceled show.

TVGuide.com: One of them has got to stick eventually, right?

McClintock: That’s what I’m saying! The law of averages. This next pilot will be my 10th pilot. Lucky number 10? How about two? Give me two. Is my karma that bad? What did I do in college? But really, I can’t complain. I am married with two kids, indoor plumbing.... Being from Ohio, as long as you’ve got indoor plumbing, you are OK.

TVGuide.com: Well, before I let you go enjoy your plumbing and your new baby, how was it working with Emily?

McClintock: Not to sound trite, but Emily is amazing. She just really is a sweet lady. She was so considerate. She went out and got a baby present when my second son was born. She didn’t have to do that. I appreciate that, and I appreciate people that extend themselves when they don’t have to. It is her show, and there is a lot of room for her to be not a nice person. She is not that way. It makes you feel like there is hope for the world. I can’t say enough about her. She was very generous. I wish the best for her and David both.